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■rttC,  OCT  ^^^'^*        V^ 

.J^^'-X<10:,^  XL 


Section „  cK  / '•^^p 


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SERMONS 


PREACHED 


Jifriatt  |r0ttstant  ^im^\\\  l\m\, 


ST.    THOMAS',    PHILADELPHIA. 


WM.  DOUGLASS,  Rector. 


PHILADELPHIA : 

KING   &  BAIRD,  PRS.,  No.  9  SANSOM  STREET. 

1854. 


i 


TO    THE 

CONGREGATION    OF 

ST.  THOMAS'  PROTESTANT  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH,  PHILADELPHIA 

THE   FOLLOWING    SERMONS, 

PREPARED   AND   PREACHED    FOR   THEIR   BENEFIT, 

ARE   AFFECTIONATELY   DEDICATED, 

AS    A    SBIALL   EXPRESSION    OF    GRATITUDE 

FOR   THE   MANY   TOKENS 

OF  ESTEEM  AND  LOVE 

BESTOWED   UPON   THE   AUTHOR 

'    DURING    HIS    PAROCHIAL   LABORS 

AMONG    THEM 

FOR  THE  PERIOD  OF  NINETEEN  YEARS. 


Philadelphia,  November,  1853. 


■fi£C.  OCT  1862 


CONTENTS 


Page. 


SERMON  I. 
THE  GOD   OP   HOPE. 

Now  THE  God  op  hope  fill  you  with  all  joy  and 

PEACE    IN    BELIEVING,  THAT    YE    MAY   ABOUND    IN 
HOPE,  THROUGH  THE  POWER  OF  THE  HoLY  GhOST. 

Rom.  XV.  13 

SERMON  11. 


PEACE   IN   CHRIST. 

aHESE  THINGS  I  HAVE  SPOKEN  UNTO   YOU    THAT  IN  ME 

YE  MIGHT  HAVE  PEACE. — Jno.  Xvi.  33 29 


CONTENTS. 

SERMON  III. 
SPIRITUAL   PROSPERITY    OF   GAIUS. 


Page. 


TnE  ELDEB,  UNTO  THE  WELL-BELOVED  GaIUS  WHOM  I 
LOVE  IN  THE  TRUTH.  BeLOVET),  I  WISH  ABOVE 
ALL  THINGS  THAT  THOU  MAYEST  PROSPER  AND  BE 
IN  HEALTH,  EVEN  AS  THY  SOUL  PBOSPERETH. 
For  I  REJOICED  OREATLY,  when  THE  BRETHREN 
CAME  AND  TESTIFIED  OF  THE  TRUTH  THAT  IS  IN 
THEE,  EVEN    AB    THOU    WALKEST    IN    THE    TRUTH. 

SdEpis.  Jno.  1,  2,  3 53 

SERMON  IV. 
MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE   AND   FORGIVENESS. 

Forbearing    one    another,    and    forgiving    one 

ANOTHER,  if  ANY  MAN  HAVE  A  QUARREL  AGAINST 
ANY,  EVEN  AS  ChRIST  FORGAVE  YOU,  SO  ALSO  00 

YE.— Col.  iii.  13 "^1 

SERMON  V. 
THE    SIN    OF   GRIEVING   THE   SPIRIT. 
And    GRIEVE    NOT   THE    IIoLY  SPIRIT    OF    GoD— Eph. 

iv.  30 ^2 


CONTENTS.  7 

SERMON  VI. 

THE   FORBEARANCE   AND   RETRIBUTIVE     JUSTICE     OF 

GOD. 

Page. 
The  Lord  is  slow  to  anger,  and  great  in  power, 
and  will  not  at   all    acquit  the  wicked. 
Nahum.  i.  3 Ill 

SERMON  VII. 

PRICE   IN   HAND   OF   THE   FOOLISH   TO    GET   WISDOM. 

Wherefore  is  there  a  price  in  the  hand  of  a 
fool  to  get  wisdom,  seeing  he  hath  no  heart 
TO  IT? — Prov.  xvii.  16 133 

SERMON  VIII 
THE   SHORTNESS   AND   UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME. 
But  this  I  say  brethren    the  time  is  short. — 

1  Cor.  vii.  29 15S 

SERMON  IX. 
ADMONITION    TO    REDEEM    THE    TIME. 
Redeeming  the  time,  because  the  days  are  evil. 

Eph.  V.  16 173 


8  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  X. 
THE  WISDOM  OF  DULY  CONSIDERING  THE  LATTER  END. 

Page 
0   THAT   THEY    WERE   WISE,    THAT   THEY   UNDERSTOOD 
THIS,  THAT  THEY  WOULD  CONSIDER  THEIR  LATTER 

END  !— Deut.  xxxii.  29 193 

SERMON  XL 
A    SACRED   NEARNESS   TO   GOD   RECOMMENDED. 
Draw  nigh  to  God,   and  he  will  draw  niqh  to 

YOU. — Gen.  Epis.  James  iv.  8 21o 

SERMON  XII. 
HAPPY   END   OF   THE   SERVANTS   OF   GOD. 
For  David  after  he  had  served  his  own  genera- 
tion BY  the  will  of  God,   fell  on  sleep. 
Acts  xiii.  36 231 


I 


SERMON     I  . 

THE   GOD  OF   HOPE. 
"Now  THE  God   of  hope   fill  you  with   all  jot  and 

PEACE  IN  BELIEVING,  THAT  YE  MAT  ABOUND  IN  HOPE, 
through  THE  POWER  OF  THE  HOLT  GhOST." 

Rom.  XV.  13. 

In  how  many  consoling  aspects  do  the 
inspired  writings  represent  the  great 
Sovereign  of  the  Universe,  at  whose 
dread  tribunal  mankind  are  destined  to 
appear,  to  render  an  account  of  the  deeds 
done  in  the  body.  Conscious  as  we  all 
are  of  guilt  and  condemnation,  had  we 
no  other  point  of  view  to  contemplate 
our  Creator,  than,  as  All-wise,  Just  and 
Omnipotent,  what  an  accumulation  of 
bitterness  would  be  mixed  in  that  cup 
of  sorrow,  of  which,  all  more  or  less  are 
forced    to   partake,    in    their    pilgrimage 

2 


10  THE  GOD  OF  HOPE.        [SER.  I. 

through  mortality.  There  would  then 
be  on  the  ocean  of  life,  no  haven  of  calm 
repose  to  the  troubled  heart — it  would 
be  perpetually  tossed  between  the  surg- 
ing billows  of  faint  hopes  and  alarming 
fears.  From  the  general  goodnes  of  God 
as  displayed  in  his  Providence,  providing 
all  things  plentifully  both  for  man  and 
beast — ''(jiving  us  rain  from  Jieaven  and 
fridiful  seasons,  filling  our  hearts  with  food 
and  gladness'^ — from  this  single  point 
of  view  of  God's  Providence,  we  might 
solace  ourselves  with  some  faint  hopes 
of  his  kind  regards  towards  his  erring 
and  sinful  creatures.  But  how  soon 
would  this  hope  be  succeeded  by  the 
most  gloomy  apprehensions  in  beholding 
different  aspects  of  the  same  Providence. 
In  view  of  the  lightnings  of  heaven  deso- 
lating the  habitations  of  man,  and  fear- 
ful earthquakes  ingulfing  towns  and 
cities  with  their  inhabitants — ''  tlte  iicsti- 
lence  that  ivaUceth  iii  darkness^'  and  "  the 
^  Acts  xiv.,  17. 


SEE.    I.]  THE   GOD   OF    HOPE. 


11 


destrtwtion  that  toasteth  at  noon-day,''-'— i\iQ 
variety  of  diseases  and  disasters  to  which 
man  is  subject   from  the  cradle  to  the 
grave  ;^  in  view  of  these  awful  indications 
of  punitive  justice,  hope,  in  the  clemency 
of  God  would  give  way  to  agonizing  fear. 
The   observing  of  our  moral  duties  (at 
best  but  very  defective)  could  not  restore 
solid  peace  to  our  anxious  hearts.     The 
consciousness  of  personal  guilt  and  trans- 
gression, with   its   attendant  forebodings 
of  the  wrath  to  come,  would  forbid  it. 
Upon   our  destiny  in  the  future  world, 
would  hang  an  impenetrable  cloud.     If 
we  anticipated  any  thing  at  the  eventful 
close  of  our  mortal  career,  it  could  be 
nothing  but  the  righteous  vengeance  of 
Heaven,  upon  our  repeated  violations  of 
his  laws.     This  would  be  our  wretched 
state,  had  we  no  grounds  to  regard  our 
Maker  in  any  other  aspect  than  as  All- 
wase.  Just    and    Omnipotent.      But    the 
great   Father  of  the   Universe   has   not 

^  Ps.  xci.,  6. 


12  THE  GOD  OF  HOPE.        [SER.  I- 

thus   hid   from   his   church    and   people 
the    smilings   of   his    countenance.      He 
has    made   a   further    revelation   of   his 
divine  character  in  the  inspired  volume. 
The  representations  he  has  there  made 
of  himself,  so  far  from  being  repulsive, 
are    the    most   pleasing    and    attractive. 
They  are  calculated  to  excite  hope  and 
confidence,  and    thereby  win   our   affec- 
tions.    For  while  we  therein  learn  that 
he   "  vnll  not  at  all  acquit    the  loiched,'''- 
we    are    also    informed    from   the    same 
divine  oracles,  that  he  is  "  the  Lord,  the 
Lord   God,  mercifid   and   gracious,  abun- 
dant  in   goodness"" — the    God  of  all   com- 
fort; the    God  of  all   grace,*  the    God  of 
X)eacer'      These  titles,  with  others  of  a 
similar   character    that    might   be   men- 
tioned, are  indicative,  of  not  only  what 
our  Creator  is  in  himself,  but  also  what 
he  is  to  us.     In  the  words  of  the  text, 

1  Nahum.  i.,  3.  ^  Ex.  xxxiv.,  G. 

8  2  Cor.  i.,  3.  *  2  looter  v.,  10. 

*  lloiii.  XV.;  33. 


SER.    I.]  THE   GOD    OF   HOPE.  13 

he  is  presented  under  the  endearing  title 
of  the  God  of  hope.  He  is  thus  repre- 
sented, because  that  ^'lively  Z^ope"  which 
can  sustain  the  soul  amidst  the  various 
trials' of  life  comes  from  God,  and  finally 
leads  us  on  to  the  enjoyment  of  his 
beatifick  presence. 

There  is  a  hope  which  man  derives 
from  the  constitution  of  his  nature.  It 
shows  itself  in  early  childhood.  At 
mature  age,  he  clings  to  it  as  a  cheerful 
companion  in  his  multiplied  pursuits  in 
life,  and  too  often,  never  relaxes  his 
grasp  upon  the  airy  phantom,  until  com- 
pelled to  do  so  by  the  irresistible  arm  of 
death.  What  is  it  that  gives  the  most 
buoyancy  and  light-heartedness  to  the 
smiling  youth  ?  Is  it  the  survey  of  the 
wondrous  works  of  nature,  and  the  great 
achievements  of  human  skill  that  pre- 
sent themselves  to  their  senses  ?  Or, 
will  the  novelty  of  these  scenes  account 
for  their  wonted  hilarity  and  glee  ?    No. 


14  THE   GOD   OF   HOPE.  [SER.    I. 

It  is  hope  in  the  future  of  joys  to  be 
realized  in  the  acquisition  of  this,  that, 
or  the  other  prize  which  earth  imparts 
to  a  few  of  her  devoted  followers.  What 
is  it  that  buoys  up  the  mariner  as  he 
leaves  his  friends,  kindred  and  home,  to 
brave  the  perils  of  the  deep,  but  liope^ 
that  he  will  safely  return  with  the  fruits 
of  his  hard  toil  and  labor.  What  but 
hope  that  sustains  the  soldier  as  he  leaves 
his  domestic  comforts,  to  engage  in  the 
strife  and  dangers  of  the  battle  field  ? 
It  is  true,  that  patriotism,  a  sense  of  duty 
to  his  country,  may  strengthen  his  heart 
and  give  energy  to  his  arm ;  but  the  hope 
that  he  may  escape  death  and  return  to 
his  native  land  to  share  the  honors  of 
successful  war,  is  the  secret  spring  that 
nerves  him  up  to  the  terrible  encounter. 
What  is  it  that  has  inspired  so  many  for 
the  past  few  years,  to  suspend  their  busi- 
ness and  leave  their  homes  for  the  gold 
regions  of  Australia  and  California;  but 
the  hope  of  returning  richly  repaid  for  all 


SER.    I.]  THE    GOD   OF   HOPE.  15 

the  hard  drudgery  to  which  they  sub- 
mitted. What  is  it  that  cheers  the  sick 
man  upon  his  bed  of  languishing. but  the 
liope,  that  through  medical  aid  and  good 
attendance,  he  will  again  renew  his 
wonted  strength  and  vigor,  and  be  thus 
prepared  to  resume  his  daily  avocation. 
This  hope  as  we  before  said  is  natural  to 
us ;  and  seems  to  be  a  merciful  provision  to 
keep  man  from  sinking  under  the  various 
difficulties  and  trials  of  his  probationary 
state.  It  is  the  spring  that  gives  him 
life  and  activity  in  all  his  movements. 

But,  as  all  the  faculties,  powers  and 
affections  of  the  soul,  have  so  far  suffered 
by  the  sad  fall  of  our  fore-jDarents,  that 
they  incline  to  things  that  are  ''  earthly^ 
sensual  and  devilisl^'^  rather  than  to 
those  things  that  are  pure,  spiritual  and 
godlike,  hope  therefore,  unrenewed  by 
divine  grace,  proves  to  be  a  deceitful 
guide.  The  object  of  pursuit  is  far  from 
being  attained  in  every  case.  In  those 
^  James  iii.,  15. 


16  THE   GOD   OF   IIOrE.  [SER.    I. 

instances  where  it  is  attained,  this  hope 
is  sure  to  be  disappointed  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  the  happiness  fondly  anticipated. 
The  young  and  sprightly  may  not  realize 
their  airy  dreams  of  future  joys  and  plea- 
sures. The  stern  realities  of  life  will 
ever  and  anon  admonish  them  of  the 
vanity  of  their  pursuits.  The  soldier, 
who  hopes  to  return  from  the  battle  and 
receive  the  plaudit  and  honors  of  his 
countrymen,  may  leave  his  carcass  among 
heaps  of  the  slain,  to  be  devoured  by  the 
beasts  of  the  field  and  the  fowls  of  the 
air.  The  sick  man  may  be  forced  to 
resign  hope,  and  yield  to  despair  of 
recovery,  as  death  approaches  with  his 
cold  and  icy  hand  upon  his  vitals. 

The  hope  referred  to  in  the  text, 
grows  not  in  nature's  garden.  It  is  the 
fruit  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  endearing 
object  of  its  regard  is  God,  the  inex- 
haustible fountain  of  blessedness.  It 
therefore  never  fails — it  never  disap- 
points us — it  "  malcetli  not  ashamed;  because 


SER.    I.]  THE    GOD    OF    HOPE.  17 

the  lave  of  God  is  shed  abroad  in  our  hearts 
hy  the  Holy  Ghost  lohich  is  given  unto  us!'^ 
This  holy  hope  is  "an  anchor  of  the  soid, 
hoth  sure  and  steadfast,  and  tohich  entereth 
into  that  ivithin  the  vail"^  Hence  it 
buoys  up  the  Christian  under  all  the 
trials,  troubles  and  afflictions  of  life.  It 
will  sustain  him  when  "flesh  and  heart 
failethr^  It  will  lead  him  with  sweet 
serenity  and  peace  over  Jordan's  river, 
and  convey  him  safely  to  Canaan's  happy 
land.  This  heavenly  guide  will  as  infal- 
libly lead  the  regenerate  soul  into  the 
beatifick  presence  of  the  King  of  saints  and 
angels,  as  did  the  miraculous  star  in  the 
east,  which  unerringly  guided  the  wise 
men  to  the  consecrated  spot,  where  their 
astonished  and  adoring  eyes  beheld  "  God, 
manifest  in  the  flesJi^^  The  hope  now 
referred  to  can  have  no  place  where  there 
is  an  absence  of  a  true  living  faith  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  the  only  Saviour  of 

1  Pvom.  v.,  5.  ""  Hebrews,  vi.,  19. 

3  Psa.  Ixxiii.,  26.  '  1  Tim.  ii.,  16. 


18  THE   GOD   OF   HOrE.  [SER.    I. 

sinners.  Faith  lies  at  the  foundation, 
and  sustains  hope.  It  is  the  property 
of  faitli  to  lay  hold  of  the  precious  decla- 
rations and  promises  of  God  as  contained 
in  his  written  word,  and  to  apply  and 
appropriate  them.  Hope,  desires  and 
expects  to  realize  all  what  God  has 
thus  promised.  In  the  exercise  of  faith 
in  the  promises,  jay  and  peace  spring  up 
in  the  soul :  and  as  hope  follows  upon 
faith,  so  faith,  as  it  increases,  causes  hope 
to  Uihound'  more  and  more.  Hence  the 
prayer  of  the  Apostle  in  behalf  of  his 
Christian  brethren  at  Rome: — that,  "the 
Gvd  of  liopG  icoidd  filV  them  ''lo'itli  all 
joy  and  peace  in  beUevlng  that''  they  "may 
abound  in  hope  throiujh  the  poiver  of  the 
Holy  Ghostr 

They,  therefore,  who  live  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  this  hope  are  the  sincere  and 
humble  followers  of  Christ,  who  are  born 
again  of  the  Spirit,  and  exalted  to  the 
high  dignity  of  "  the  sons  of  Godr'  They 
'  1  John,  iii.,  22. 


SER.    I.]  THE   GOD    OF   HOPE.  19 

"  in  time  past  wallced  according  to  the  course 
of  this  world,  according  to  the  prince  of  the 
power  of  the  air,  the  spirit  that  now  worlceth 
in  the  children  of  disobedience^'^  '^heing 
alie7is  from  the  ccnnmomoealth  of  Israel,  and 
strangers  from  the  covenants  of  promise,  hav- 
ing no  hope,  and  ivithout  God  in  the  world  "^ 
But  through  the  rich  mercy  and  grace  of 
God,  the  eyes  of  their  understanding  were 
enlightened  to  perceive  and  feel  their 
wretched  state  and  condition  as  sinners 
before  God.  They  saw  themselves  utterly 
cut  off  from  all  hope  of  pardon  and  re- 
conciliation with  their  Maker,  "by  the 
deeds  of  the  law"  they  had  so  often  vio- 
lated. All  hope  of  working  out  a  right- 
eousness of  their  own,  was  immediately 
crushed,  upon  meditating  the  startling 
declaration  :  "  Cursed  is  every  cme  that  con- 
tinueth  not  in  all  things  which  are  written 
in  the  hooh  of  the  laio  to  do  them^^  But, 
on  beholding  that  ''new  and  living  ivay^ 

'  Eph.  i.,  2.         2  Eph.  ii.,  12.  3  Qal.  iii.,  10. 


20  THE    fJOD   OF    HOPE.  [SER.   I. 

opened  np  for  us  by  the  blood  of  Jesus, 
they  "  fled  for  refuge  to  lay  hold  upon" 
that  "  blessed  hope,"  which  is  "  set  before 
us"  in  the  gospel.  They  found  shelter 
from  the  wrath  of  God,  the  curse  of  the 
law,  under  the  protection  of  the  all-sufli- 
cient  sacrifice  of  Christ.  From  his  inex- 
haustible fulness,  they  receive  fresh  sup- 
plies of  grace  to  enable  them  to  ''  live 
soberly,  righteously  and  godly,  in  this 
present  world" — "  to  use  the  world  as  not 
abusing  it" — '^  to  pass  through  thi-ngs  tem- 
poral, so  as  not  to  lose  those  things  that 
are  eternal." 

My  brethren, — the  experience  of  a 
goodly  number  of  you,  I  trust,  has  thus 
been  briefly  sketched.  Some  among  you 
have  been  timely  awakened  to  see  the 
vanity  of  all  that  here  dazzle  and  delude 
the  thoughtless  and  impenitent.  You  have 
been  enabled,  through  grace,  to  loosen  your 
attachment  to  them,  and  to  prefer  those 
joys  that  are  pure,  spiritual  and  heavenly. 


SER,    I,]  THE    GOD    OF   HOPE. 


21 


Your  happy  condition  here  does  not  ex- 
empt you  from  pain,  sorrow,  and  trials  of 
various  kinds.     These  you  have  to  meet, 
as  they  come  in  their  turn.     But  in  the 
midst  of  them  all,  you  may  sympathize 
with  the  Psalmist  when  he  said,  "  Itvait 
for  the  Lord,  my  soul  doth  tcait,  cmd  in  his 
word  do  I  ho2?er     Let   me    exhort   you 
therefore,  to  "hold  fast  the  hecjinning  of 
your  confidence  firm  unto  the  end!'     Let 
your  tribulations,  trials  and  afflictions  be 
what  they  may,  "^ress''  onward  "  toward 
the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of 
God    in    Christ    Jesus;'    increasing   and 
abounding  in  hope.     Are  you  walking  in 
darkness  and  have  no  light  ?     Hear  what 
your  Almighty  friend  and  father  says  to 
his  afflicted  Church,  and  7iop)e  on.     "In  a 
little  wrath  I  hid  my  face  from  thee  for  a 
moment;  hut  with  everlasting  kindness  toill 
I  have  mercy  on  thee  saith   the  Lord  thy 
Redeemer,     For  the  mountains  shall  depart, 
and  the  hills  le  removed ;  hut  my  kindness 
^  Psa.  cxxx.,  5. 


22  THE   GOD    OP   HOPE.  [SER.    I. 

shall  not  dejyart  from  thee,  neither  shall  the 
covenant  of  my  peace  he  removed,  saith  the 
Lord  that  hath  mercy  on  theeJ''     Are  you 
struggling  against  the  fierce  winds  of  ad- 
versity ?     Listen  to  the  cheering  voice  of 
your  Redeemer  and  lift  up  your  hearts. — 
"  The  very  hairs  of  your  head,''  says  he, 
^'  are  all  numleredr^     There  is  no  such 
thing  as  chance  in   the  history  of  God's 
people.    Every  event  of  their  life,  however 
afflictive  in  its  character,  is  a  link  in  that 
golden  chain,  which  is  to  raise  them  pro- 
gressively, from  earth  to  heaven.     Are  you 
bowed  down  with  the  weight  of  years  and 
their  increasing  infirmities  ?    Hope  in  God 
and  rejoice,  that  the  time  is  so  near  at  hand, 
when  angels  at  the  gate  of  Paradise,  shall 
hail  you  as   an  immortal  horn;  horn  "  to 
an  inheritance,  ijicorrupihle,  undefiled  and 
that  fadeth  not   away,  reserved  in  heaven 
for  you,  v:lio  are  hept  hy  the  poioer  of  God 
through  faith  unto  salvation,  ready  to  he 
revealed  in  the  last  time."^ 

^  Isa.  liv.,  8-10.     "  Luke,  xii.,  7.     ^  1  Pctcr,  i.,  4. 


SER.    I.]  THE   GOD    OP   HOPE.  23 

A  word  of  admonition  and  entreaty  to 
that  class  of  our  hearers,  whose  hopes  are 
all  centered  in  this  lower  world.  It  is 
true  my  deluded  friends,  that  this  earth 
lias  its  peculiar  attractions.  The  innu- 
merable multitude,  that  in  every  land, 
throng  the  "broad  loay  that  Jeadeth  to 
destruction^''  is  proof  positive,  that  some 
strong  enchantments  are  beguiling  their 
devious  pathway  to  the  unknown  future. 
But  bear  in  mind,  do  not  forget,  in  your 
silly  chase  after  a  phantom,  that  this 
planet,  with  all  its  fine  furniture,  is  to  be 
dissolved.  "  The  day  of  the  Lord  will 
come  as  a  thief  in  the  night,  in  the  lohich, 
the  heavens  shcdl  ^ass  aivay  with  a  gi^eat 
noise,  and  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fer- 
vent heat,  the  earth  also  and  the  woi'lcs  that 
are  therein  shall  he  himied  up.  Nevertheless, 
ice  according  to  his  promise  look  for  new 
heavens  and  a  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth 
righteousnessr'^  Very  precious,  indeed,  to 
the  Christian,  is  this  promise.  But  it  can 
»  2ad  Pct.r,  iii.,  10-13. 


24  THE   GOD    OF    HOPE.         •         [SER.    I. 

afford  no  ground  of  hope  to  characters 
which  you  now  sustain.  In  these  iieio 
heavens  and  neio  earth  spoken  of,  you  can 
have  no  portion.  "  There  shall  in  no  lolse 
enter  into  it  any  thing  that  defiletli,  neither 
lohatsoever  worheth  ahomination,  or  malcetli 
a  lie:  hut  tliey  ivhich  are  luritten  in  the 
LamVs  hooh  of  life!'^  As  your  hopes  were 
placed  upon  the  idols  of  earth,  w  ith  the 
idols  of  a  burning  earth,  you  will  then  be 
left  to  perish.  The  lot  of  all  who  shall 
then  sustain  the  characters  that  you  now 
do,  must  be  with  hypocrites,  unbelievers, 
and  all  the  abominable  in  the  region  of 
hopeless  misery  and  despair.  We  turn 
aside  from  this  awful  picture  to  urge  you 
to  seek,  for,  you  may  yet  obtain  the  Chris- 
tian's hope.  You  are  yet  within  the  reach 
of  mercy.  The  gospel  with  its  inviting 
voice,  still  calls. — Conscience,  in  clamor- 
ous tones,  still  warns. — The  Holy  Spirit, 
though  as  still  in  his  influences  as  the 
dew  of  the  morning,  yet  powerfully  strives 
'  llcv.  xxi.,  27. 


SER.    I.]  THE   GOD   OF   HOPE.  25 

with  you. — The  great  High  Priest  who 
has  passed  into  the  heavens,  still  pleads 
in  your  behalf.  Your  condition,  there- 
fore, wretched  though  it  be,  is  not  despe- 
rate. However,  there  is  something  to  be 
done  on  your  part,  before  you  can  attain 
this  inestimable  prize.  You  must  be  up 
and  doing,  co-operating  with  God.  While 
he  iDorheth  in  you  to  will  and  to  do  of  Ms 
good  jpleasure,  you  are  to  "  worh  out  your 
own  salvation  ivitli  fear  and  tremhling!^ 
This  hope  is  not  attained  by  a  few  lazy 
wishes  and  half-hearted  endeavors.  It  is 
attained  only  by  an  earnest,  diligent  and 
persevering  use  of  all  the  appointed  means 
of  grace.  There  are  difficulties  to  be  sur- 
mounted :  hence,  you  are  called  upon  in 
the  strength  of  divine  grace,  to  renounce 
the  liidden  works  of  darhness;  to  ''strive  to 
enter  in  at  the  straight  gate/'  to  "  labor  to 
enter  into  restr  It  is  treasured  up  in 
Christ ;  therefore,  your  longing  eye  must 
be  constantly  fixed  upon  him.  In  his 
all-prevailing  name   alone,  you   must  ap- 

3* 


2G  THE   GOD    OF    HOPE.  [SER.    I. 

proacli  the  throne  of  heavenly  grace,  and 
a.b/.-,  if  you  would  receive,  seeh,  if  you 
would  find,  and  hnoclc^  hioch,  and  hioch 
again,  if  you  would  have  the  door  opened 
unto  you.  You  have  the  divine  assur- 
ance, that  every  one  that  thus  "  ashetli 
receiveth;  and  he  that  seeketh  findetli; 
and  to  him  that  hnocheth  it  shall  he  opened"^ 
Oh,  let  me  entreat  you  to  begin  this  strug- 
gle in  good  earnest.  It  is  a  noble  and 
magnanimous  struggle — a  battle  against 
self,  against  "-  jlesli  andhlood ;  against 'prin- 
cipalities and  palmers ;  against  spiritual 
loichedness  in  high  placesT  It  is  therefore, 
a  formidable  struggle.  Apparently,  the 
odds  are  against  you.  Not  so.  Greater 
is  He  that  is  for  you,  than  all  that  can  be 
against  you  in  this  greatest  of  all  battles. 
Angels  look  on  with  the  most  intense  in- 
terest, to  see  the  issue.  And  whenever 
they  recognize  the  cry  of  a  soul  newly 
born  of  the  Spirit,  they  immediately  raise 
the  loud  shout  in  heaven  : — "  tlic  dead  is 

J  Matt,  vii.,  8. 


SER.    I.]  THE    GOD    OF    HOPE.  27 

alive,  tlie  lost  is  founcir  God  the  Father, 
who  gave  his  only  begotten  Son  to  atone 
for  your  sins — God  the  Son,  who  redeemed 
you  by  his  blood; — God  the  Holy  Ghost, 
who  sanctifieth  the  people  of  God,  are  all 
on  your  side  in  this  noble  warfare.  Then 
desert  the  camp  of  Satan.  You  know 
that  he  has  often  deceived  you,  and  but 
for  the  Lord's  mercy  would  have  long 
since  led  you  onward  to  the  pit  of  endless 
woe.  Escape  then  for  your  life :  flee  for 
refuge  to  lay  hold  upon  that  hope  which 
comes  from  God,  and  will  lead  you  to 
those  ineffable  joys  which  He  has  laid  up 
for  those  who  love  him. 


SERMON    II 


PEACE  IN  CHRIST. 


"  These  things  i  have  spoken  unto  you,  that  in  me 

YE    MIGHT    HAVE    PEACE. "  Jolin,  Xvi.,  33. 

Peace  of  mind,  is  an  object  so  invalua- 
ble in  itself,  that  there  is  no  human  being 
but  what  regards  it  as  worthy  of  his 
most  anxious  toils  and  ardent  pursuit 
Men  may  not  be  uniform  in  their  ways 
to  obtain  it,  yet,  the  desire  to  enjoy  it,  is 
implanted  deeply  in  every  bosom.  But 
the  great  and  important  question  is : — 
Where  is  it  to  be  found  ? 

Is  it  to  be  found  in  the  empty  mirth 
and  sinful  pleasures  of  the  world  ?  So 
thinks  the  thoughtless  and  inexperienced 
youth  who  is  anxious  to  be  free  from 
parental  care  and  restraint,  that  he  may 


30  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

give  loose  rein  to  the  indulgence  of  his 
carnal  and  corrupt  appetites  and  passions. 
Pie  views  the  sober  class  of  society  with 
a  degree  of  pain  and  disgust.  To  their 
quiet  and  sedate  movements  he  finds 
nothing  in  himself  congenial.  If  he  at 
all  admits  the  wisdom  and  propriety  of 
their  course,  he  is  sure  to  do  it  in  such  a 
way  as  to  shield  himself  from  conviction. 
A  strict  regard  to  the  serious  affairs  of 
religion,  is  proper  only,  as  he  will  have  it, 
for  the  aged,  the  sick  and  dying.  But  as 
it  regards  the  young  and  sprightly,  let 
them  eat,  drink  and  be  merry — let  them 
mingle  in  the  circle  where  counte- 
nances brighten,  and  the  heart  leaps  up 
at  the  sound  of  the  timbrel  and  dance ; 
where  their  ears  are  saluted  with  the  loud 
laugh  and  the  merry  song.  This,  is  their 
proper  element,  here  alone  can  the  soul's 
native  thirst  for  happiness  be  gratified. 
Thus  reasons  the  votary  of  pleasure. 
But  we  would  in  all  kindness  beseech 
him   to   ponder   his   steps.      Consider,  if 


SER.   II.]  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  31 

indeed,  among  your  many  frivolous 
thoughts  there  is  room  left  for  considera- 
tion, consider  well  the  solemn  and  ad- 
monitory words,  "  There  is  a  way  which 
seemetJi  right  unto  a  man,  hut  the  end 
thereof,  are  the  ivays  of  deathr^  "  Rejoice, 
0  young  man,  in  thy  youth,  and  let  thy 
heart  cheer  thee  in  the  days  of  thy  youth, 
and  walk  in  the  ways  of  thine  heart,  and 
in  the  sight  of  thine  eyes  ;  hid  Icyioio  thou, 
that  for  all  these  things,  Ood  will  hring  thee 
into  judgmentr^  Be  not  deceived  by 
external  appearances.  The  sprightly  air, 
the  elastic  step,  the  high  spirits  that  mark 
the  men  of  worldly  pleasure,  are  not  to 
be  regarded  as  infallible  signs  of  inward 
peace.  These  outward  marks,  may  be 
nothing  more  than  a  screen  to  hide  from 
human  view,  an  inward  anguish  of  spirit, 
unknown  to  all  but  that  Omniscient 
Being,  from  whom  no  secrets  are  hid. 
The  pleasure  enjoyed  in  gratifying  the 
inordinate  desires  of  the  depraved  heart, 
1  Prov.  xiv.,  12.  2  Ecc.  xi.,  9. 


32  PEACE    IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

is  always  followed^  more  or  less,  with 
painful  reflections.  It  is  ^  false  pleasure. 
It  is  not  a  pleasure  that  results  from  the 
whole  machinery  of  man,  moving  on  in 
harmonious  order,  but  a  pleasure  conse- 
quent upon  doing  violence  to  the  highest 
faculty  of  our  moral  nature.  There  can 
be  no  pleasure  in  sin,  unless  steps  are 
taken  to  hush  the  clamorina'  voice  of 
conscience,  and  thus  degrade  the  im- 
mortal spirit  by  bringing  it  into  subjection 
to  the  animal  nature.  When  men  sue- 
ceed  in  this,  then,  they  have  a  pleasure 
similar  to  what  is  enjoyed  in  a  delightful 
dream,  when  the  imagination  chiefly  is 
at  work — a  pleasure,  equally  as  false,  and 
which  they  find  to  be  so,  when  they 
are  awakened  by  the  rebukes  of  the 
Spirit,  or  the  fatal  blow  of  death,  who 
forces  them  to  acknowledge,  that  alas! 
it  was  but  a  dream.  Vr'e  proceed  now 
to  inquire : — 

1.  Whether  or  not  true  peace  is  to  be 
found  in  the  acquisition  of  wealth.     One 


SER.   II.]  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  33 

might  suppose  that  it  is,  judging  from 
the  great  struggle  there  is  among  men  in 
order  to  acquire  it.  But  a  very  slight 
observation  of  those  who  have  been  suc- 
cessful in  this  respect  will  convince  us 
of  the  contrary.  There  is  nothing  more 
remarkable  in  man,  than  his  proneness 
to  lose  sight  of  whatever  he  may  possess 
of  earthly  riches,  in  his  ardent  desire  to 
add  to  his  possessions.  Whatever  may 
be  the  opinion  of  his  fellow-men  with 
regard  to  his  state,  he  himself  is  far  from 
being  satisfied.  The  point  where  he  sup- 
looses  that  he  might  possibly  consider 
himself  happy,  he  has  not  attained. 
And  should  he  attain  it,  he  then  finds 
that  his  desires  are  so  much  more 
enlarged,  that  he  feels  himself  to  be  as 
far  from  happiness  as  he  did  before  : 
such  is  the  unsatisfying  nature  of  tem- 
poral things.  Besides  this,  there  is  the 
painful  disquietude  arising  from  the  fear 
of  loss.  For  it  is  impossible  for  man  so 
to  secure  himself  in  these  things  as  to  be 


34  PEACE    IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    IT. 

out  of  all  danger  of  loss.  If  he  hear  of 
a  lire,  or  of  a  vessel  losing  her  cargo,  or 
of  the  sudden  fall  in  the  price  of  stock, 
or  of  the  dishonesty  of  individuals  he 
has  credited ;  or  if  he  hear  of  the  faihu'e 
of  some  monied  institution  in  which  he 
is  interested,  he  is  filled  with  the  most 
painful  anxieties  of  mind,  from  which 
his  present  possessions  cannot  possibly 
relieve  him. 

3.  Is  true  peace  to  be  found  in  the 
honors  of  the  world — in  fame  ?  What 
is  fame  ?  We  may  have  seen  its  nature 
illustrated  in  the  history  of  the  great 
political  men  of  the  present  day.  For  a 
little  while  w^e  see  them  puffed  by  the 
wind  of  a  multitude ;  but  how  soon  do 
we  behold  them^by  the  same  multitude 
as  severely  pelted.  The  conduct  of  the 
joeople  toward  our  blessed  Lord,  forcibly 
illustrates  the  emptiness  of  fame,  and 
clearly  shows  how  little  to  be  depended 
on  is  the  applause  of  men.  Those  who 
at  one  time  cried  : — "  llosanna,   blessed 


SER,    II.]  PEACE    IN    CHRIST.  35 

is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord/'  at  another,  unite  in  the  tumul- 
tuous cry  : — "  Aioay  lolth  Mm,  aivay  tcitli 
Mm,  crucify  himr  There  are  few  only, 
who  by  hard  toiling  and  study,  which 
"  is  a  weariness  of  the  flesh,"  ascend  the 
hill  of  fame ;  and  those  few,  if  they 
attained  all  the  happiness  anticipated 
by  them,  (which  is  far  from  being  the 
case,)  we  find  that  they  generally  meet 
with  a  reverse  Avhich  gives  force  to  the 
exhortation  of  Scripture  :  "  Cease  ye  from 
man  wliose  hreatJi  is  in  Ms  nostrihr^  But 
suppose,  what  is  very  rare,  that  the 
breeze  of  popular  favor  should  be  unin- 
terrupted in  its  course  —  that  fame's 
trumpet  should  sound  forth  their  praise 
without  one  discordant  note.  Pleasing 
as  this  might  be  to  the  distinguished 
personage,  it  is  certain,  that  this  circum- 
stance can  afford  no  comfort  to  the  soul 
while  the  body  lay  prostrate  upon  a  bed 

1  Isa.  ii.,  22. 


36  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

of  languishing — no  stay  and  staff  to  the 
trembling  spirit  when  the  solemn  hour 
of  departing  life  arrives.  A  pompous 
funeral  would,  doubtless,  follow  the  de- 
ceased to  the  house  appointed  for  all 
living.  Sculptured  marble  would  tell  to 
future  ages  the  spot  where  rests  the 
honored  remains.  A  similar  tribute  of 
respect  we  may  fairly  conjecture^  was 
paid  to  the  memory  of  that  noted  world- 
ling we  read  of  in  holy  writ.  But  it 
could  not  reach  his  case,  or  meet  his 
necessity  in  the  spirit  land.  While  his 
surviving  friends  were  eulogizing  his 
name  in  this  world,  the  thrilling  mes- 
sage that  came  back  from  Dives  was : 
"/  am  tormented  in  this  fiame."  Thus 
have  we  briefly  inquired  of  the  pleasures, 
the  profits,  the  honors  of  the  world,  and 
in  each  department,  a  voice  is  heard  say- 
ing true  peace  is  not  to  be  found  in  me. 
Where  then  is  true  and  substantial  hap- 
l)iness  to  be  found?  Surely  our  heavenly 
Father  has  not  produced  in  our  bosoms 


SER.    II.]  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  37 

this  undying  thirst  after  happiness  to 
be  a  perpetual  source  of  torment  to  us. 
Such  a  reflection  cannot  be  indulged  in 
for  a  moment  without  incurring  the  guilt 
of  the  most  horrid  blasphemy.  "  The 
Lord  is  good  to  all :  and  Ms  tender  mercies 
are  over  all  his  works.''^  The  desire  for 
happiness  has  been  incorporated  in  our 
moral  nature,  for  the  benevolent  purpose 
of  inciting  us  to  seek  it  where  alone  it 
can  be  found.  Again  we  inquire,  where 
can  it  be  obtained  ?  Let  us  hear  what 
the  wise  man  of  the  east  said  on  this 
subject.  He  was  surrounded  by  all  the 
magnificence  and  grandeur  of  a  royal 
court.  He  was  eminent  for  profound 
wisdom,  and  he  diligently  applied  him- 
self to  the  seeking  of  this  invaluable 
treasure.  He  tried  every  thing  under 
the  sun  that  man  calls  good  and  great. 
And  what  was  the  result  of  his  long  and 
patient  research?     The  conclusion  of  the 

^  Psa.  cxlv.,  9. 
4* 


38  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

whole  matter  to  which  he  arrived  was, 
to — ''Fear  God  and  heej-)  his  command- 
inents.'''  But  a  greater  than  Solomon  is 
here — the  Lord  from  heaven — He  whom 
the  iDrophet  Isaiah  points  out  as  the 
"  MifjhUj  God,  the  EverJasting  Father,  the 
Prince  of  Peace!'^  Let  us  then  give  the 
more  earnest  heed  to  what  he  says  on 
this  all-important  subject:  for  he  must 
be  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  things 
that  belong  to  our  peace.  He  is  now  in 
communication  with  that  favorite  few 
from  whom  he  is  soon  to  take  his  depar- 
ture. And  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose 
that  he  will  plainly  point  out  to  them 
the  path  of  peace.  This  he  does  :  but 
his  instructions  on  this  subject  are  very 
different  from  the  notions  they  enter- 
tained of  happiness.  Like  many  of  the 
present  day,  their  views  were  too  much 
tinctured  with  the  spirit  of  i\\Q  world. 
To    have    the    kingdom    restored    unto 

^  Ecc.  xii.,  13.  2  ipj^_  -^^    (5_ 


SER.    II.]  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  39 

Israel  appears  then  to  have  been  the 
height  of  their  ambition.  And  they  had 
entertained  the  hope  that  the  great 
object  of  his  advent  into  this  world  was 
to  effect  this  desired  end.  But  to  their 
great  surprise,  he  expatiates  upon  his 
death,  resurrection  and  ascension  to 
heaven,  and  the  glorious  results  that 
would  flow  therefrom.  In  the  precious 
words  that  fell  from  his  lips  his  God-like 
benevolence  shone  forth  conspicuously. 
He  knew  very  well  the  severe  trials  and 
difficulties  to  which  his  discijDles  would  be 
exposed  after  his  departure  from  them. 
Pie  knew  that  neither  the  temporal  pros- 
perity and  glory  of  Israel,  or  any  thing 
else  in  thisVorld  was  calculated  to  afford 
solid  peace  to  the  soul.  But  he  would 
not  leave  them  comfortless.  Hence  in 
infinite  love  and  compassion  he  assures 
them  that  peace  could  be  found  no  where 
else  but  in  Mm.  "  TTiese  things  I  have 
spoken  unto  you  that  in  me  ye  might  have 
peace!' 


40  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

"  To  he  in  Glirist,''  is  a  Scriptural 
expression  that  deserves  special  notice. 
You  are  aware  that  the  inspired  volume 
in  representing  the  wretched  condition  of 
fallen  and  degenerate  man,  sets  before 
him  as  the  only  firm  ground  of  hope, 
the  vicarious  atonement  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  It  directs  us  with 
penitent  hearts  and  a  lively  faith  to 
ground  our  expectation  of  pardoning 
mercy  at  the  hand  of  God,  solely  on 
the  all-prevailing  merits  of  the  Saviour. 
Now,  as  those  only  who  thus  rely,  derive 
from  him  all  the  special  benefits,  bless- 
ings and  privileges  procured  by  his  death, 
they  are  therefore  represented  as  being 
in  liim,  or  united  to  him  by  the  appro- 
priating property  of  that  "faith  which 
works  by  love,  purifies  the  heart,  and 
overcomes  the  world."  This  spiritual 
union  is  compared  by  our  Lord  to  the 
vital  connexion  that  exists  between  the 
branch  and  the  vine.  "/  am  the  vine,'' 
says    he,    ^' yc  are    the   hrancltes :    he  that 


SER.    II.]  PEACE    IN    CHRIST.  41 

abideth  in  me,  and  I  in  Mm,  the  same 
hringetJi  forth  mucli  fruit:  for  loitliout  me 
ye  can  do  nothing.''^  As  the  branch  de- 
rives all  its  nourishment  from  its  union 
to  the  parent  stock,  so  does  the  Christian 
in  like  manner  derive  spiritual  life,  vigor 
and  fruitfulness  through  his  union  to  Christ 
by  true  faith.  The  characters  therefore 
who  are  properly  designated  as  being  in 
Christ,  are  his  true  sincere  followers ;  and 
the  happy  result  that  follows  from  this 
connexion  is — they  have  peace.  Let  us 
consider  the  nature  of  this  peace  which 
can  be  found  nowhere  else  but  in  Christ. 
It  is  a  spiritual  peace,  heavenly  and 
divine  in  its  nature  and  origin.  It  is  a 
peace  that  relates  to  our  Maker,  our  own 
consciences  and  to  all  mankind.  No  one 
is  at  peace  with  God  in  his  natural  and 
impenitent  state.  In  the  bosom  of  every 
man  until  renewed  by  divine  grace,  there 
is  a  principle  directly  at  war  with  the 
Most  High.     It   is   irreconcilable   in   its 

*  St.  Jno.  XV.,  5. 


42  PEACE    IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

hostility  to  the  divine  government.  "  Tlie 
carnal  mind  is  enmity  a(jainst  God,  is  not 
subject  to  Ids  laivs,  neitlier  indeed  can  he!' 
In  consequence  of  this  hostile  position 
maintained  by  the  impenitent  they  are 
objects  of  Heaven's  righteous  displeasure  ; 
and  will  inevitably  perish  by  the  hand  of 
divine  justice,  unless  they  avert  it  by  a 
timely  reconciliation  to  his  plan  of  salva- 
tion, devised  in  mercy  for  the  full  reco- 
very of  man  from  the  sad  ruins  of  the  fall. 
Hence  "  there  is  no  ]ieace  to  the  wiched, 
they  are  like  the  troubled  sea,  that  cannot 
rest,  whose  waters  cast  tip  mire  and  du't." 
They  cannot  enjoy  peace  and  friendship 
with  God.  They  sit  in  darkness  and  in 
the  region  and  shadow  of  death.  "  God 
is  light,  and  in  him  is  no  darkness  at 
all."  Light  and  darkness  cannot  amal- 
gamate. '  Two  cannot  walk  together  ex- 
cept they  agree.'  The  ungodly  may  often 
contrive  to  hush  the  voice  of  conscience 
and  sing  a  false  peace  to  themselves ;  but 
there  will  be  special  seasons  in  their  his- 


SER,    IT.]  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  43 

tory  when  they  are  made  to  sweat   and 
agonize  under  its  tortures,  and  the  fearful 
forebodings  of  the  wrath  to  come.     Now 
as  such  persons  are  enemies  to  God,  ene- 
mies to  themselves,  they  must    also    be 
enemies  to  the  true  peace  and  happiness 
of  their  fellow  men.     For  he  who  is  blind 
to  his  own  best  interest,  cannot  be  pre- 
pared to  consult  the  true  interest  of  others. 
They  are  ail  marshalled  on  the  side  of 
their   great   Leader;    "the  Prince  of  the 
]Dower  of  the  air,  the  spirit  that  noio  worketli 
in    the  children   of  disobedience.''^     Their 
influence  is  in  opposition  to  that  kingdom 
which    Christ    came   to   establish  —  that 
"  kingdom"  that  consists  "  in  righteousness, 
peace,   and  joy  in  the  Holy  Oliostr     And 
this  is  true  of  all  the  various  grades  of 
character  that  obtain  among  the  impeni- 
tent.    "  He  that  is  not  icith  me,''  says  our 
Lord,  "  is  against  me  ;  and  he  that  gather- 
eth  not  ivith  me  scattereth  alroad!"'     Thus 

'  Epli.  ii.,  2.  2  Matt,  xii.,  30. 


44  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

it  is  with  the  carnal  mind  which  is  en- 
mity against  God,  destitute  of  tr^£  inward 
peace,  and  in  opposition  to  the  true  hap- 
piness of  their  fellow-men.  On  the  other 
hand,  those  who  maintain  a  vital  union 
wdth  Christ,  are  new  creatures — ^  they 
are  begotten  again' — they  are  "  lorn,  not 
ofUood,  nor  of  the  loill  of  the  flesh,  nor  of 
the  will  of  man,  hut  of  Godr^  Whereas 
in  their  unregenerate  state,  the  principle 
of  hostility  against  the  divine  government 
reigned  in  their  bosoms,  now,  the  hea- 
venly principle  of  love  to  God  is  graciously 
shed  abroad  in  their  hearts.  And  while 
they  evince  their  love  to  Him  by  a  sin- 
cere and  cheerful  obedience  to  his  laws. 
He  manifests  his  love  and  friendship  to 
them  by  sending  forth  his  Spirit  to  seal 
their  pardon,  remove  their  guilt,  and 
witness  to  their  adoption  into  the  hea- 
venly family:  so  that  instead  of  being  as 
before,   tormented  with  a  painful  appre- 

1  Jii  .  i.,  18. 


SER.    II.]  PEACE    IN    CHUIST.  45 

liension  of  his  displeasure,  they  now  have 
the  sweet  comfort  of  regarding  him   as 
their  reconciled  Friend  and  Father.  They 
have  no  ground  to  look  for  perfect  and 
uninterrupted  happiness  in  this  state  of 
probation.,  and  trial.     While  they  remain 
in  this  world,  they  expect  their  share  of 
tribulation — they  count   it   not    strange, 
when    they    are    in    heaviness    through 
manifold  temptations.     Of  all  this  they 
have  been  forewarned  by  their  Lord  and 
Master,  to  whose  suiferings  they  must  in 
their  measure  be  conformed,  if  they  would 
hope  to  participate  with  him  in  the  inef- 
fable glories  of  his  kingdom  above.     But 
'  it  is  their  exalted  privilege  at  all  times, 
to  ^4ook  to  the  hill,  from  whence  cometh 
their  help" — to  approach   the   throne   of 
grace  with  humble  boldness,  and  obtain 
mercy  and  find    grace   to   help   in  their 
peculiar  time  of  need — "in  every  thing  hy 
prayer  and  supplication  luith  thanhsgiving,'' 
to  'let'  their  ''requests  he  made  hnown  unto 
God;  and  the  peace  of  God  ivhich passtih 


46  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  [SER,    II. 

all  understanding,  shall  keep'  their  "  hearts 
and  mbids  through  Christ  JesusJ'^  The 
peace  that  flows  from  this  source  is  called 
the  peace  of  God,  because  he  is  the  author 
and  supporter  of  it.  It  is  said  to  pass  all 
understanding,  because  its  nature  and 
excellency  can  be  fully  set  forth  by  no 
human  tongue.  We  do  not  say  that  the 
ungodly  have  no  pleasure.  It  is  the  plea- 
sure which  they  enjoy  in  the  gratification 
of  their  carnal  desires,  appetites  and  pas- 
sions, that  so  allures,  captivates  and  holds 
them  in  durance  vile,  that  they  have  no 
desire  to  be  elevated  above  earth ;  no 
desire  to  have  their  eyes  opened  to  behold 
that  radiant  host  of  angels,  patriarchs, 
prophets  and  apostles  who  all  point  to 
the  Lamb  of  God  as  the  only  way  to 
glory,  immortality,  and  eternal  life.  So 
enfeebled  are  they  in  their  moral  nature, 
that  they  cannot  command  the  energy  to 
imitate  the  noble  example  of  Moses,  who 

^  Phil,  iv.,  G. 


SER.    ir.]  PEACE    IN   CHRIST.  47 

would  '^rather  suffer  affliction  witli  the 
people  of  God,  than  to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of 
sin  for  a  season!''^  Ah !  how  true  it  is, 
that  the  pleasures  of  sin  are  but  for  a 
seojson : — they  are  momentary.  And  be- 
sides, they  leave  an  '  aching  void'  within. 
They  leave  nothing  to  which  the  mind 
can  recur  with  pure  and  pleasing  delight. 
Not  so  with  the  peace  of  God.  The 
sweet  tranquillity  the  believer  enjoys 
from  a  sense  of  pardon  and  acceptance 
with  his  Maker,  is  rendered  doubly  pre- 
cious from  the  fact,  that  it  is  a  pledge,  a 
foretaste  of  that  eternal  "  rest  that  remains 
for  the  people  of  God."  Hence  it  is  said 
to  be  '  a  peace  that  flows  as  a  river.'  As 
a  river  flows  onward  and  becomes  wider 
and  deeper  as  it  approaches  the  ocean  into 
which  it  is  ultimately  lost ;  so  does  the 
peace  which  Jesus  gives,  flow  on  pleas- 
antly in  the  soul,  increasing  in  its  depth, 
expanding  in  its  onward  course,  until  it 


^  Heb.  xi.,  25. 


48  PEACE   IN    CHRIST,  [SER.    II. 

is  finally  lost  in  tlie  boundless  ocean  of 
never-ending  peace.  Here  then  is  that 
precious  jewel  which  can  satisfy  the  soul 
of  man,  because  it  is  every  way  suited  to 
his  immortal  nature,  and  fully  adequate 
to  meet  his  wants  both  in  this  world  and 
that  which  is  to  come. 

How  unspeakably  happy  is  the  lot  of 
sincere  Christians.  The  blessed  Redeemer, 
though  seated  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
majesty  on  high,  yet  manifests  himself 
unto  them  as  he  does  not  unto  the  world. 
He  still  addresses  you  by  his  word  and 
Spirit  in  the  same  tones  of  love,  tender- 
ness and  compassion,  that  charmed  the 
hearts  of  that  little  band  that  followed 
him  in  the  days  of  his  humiliation.  When 
you  are  in  heaviness  through  manifold 
temptations — when  exposed  to  the  piti- 
less peltings  of  storm  after  storm — when 
the  heart  is  sad  and  cheerless  under  the 
bereavement  of  some  near  and  dear 
friend ;  or  when  the  foul  breath  of 
slander  has  prevailed  against  you,  causing 


SER.    II.]  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  49 

friends  to  forsake  and  enemies  to  ex- 
claim :  '  there,  there,  so  we  would  have  it ;' 
in  these  dark  hours,  you  may  hear  the 
words  of  Jesus  like  the  soft  music  of 
heaven  falling  sweetly  upon  your  ears, 
saying,  "Peace  I  leave  loith  you,  my ^eace 
I  give  unto  you :  not  as  the  world  giveth, 
give  I  unto  you.  Let  not  your  heart  he 
troubled,  neither  let  it  he  afraid!'^  Those 
among  you,  my  brethren,  whose  experi- 
ence can  bear  witness  to  the  peaceful 
paths  of  religion,  should  be  careful  to 
evince  your  inward  tranquillity  by  an 
exhibition  of  Christian  tempers,  disposi- 
tions, words  and  actions ;  by  works  of 
love  and  charity  to  your  neighbors ;  by 
endeavoring  to  the  utmost  of  your  ability 
to  promote  the  cause  of  your  Redeemer  in 
the  world.  Thus  will  you  be  letting 
your  light  shine,  and  be  preparing  your- 
selves more  and  more  for  that  glorious 
future  not  far  in  the  distance,  when  the 

^  Jno.  xiv.,  27. 
5* 


50  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

cross  shall  be  exchanged  for  the  crown  ; 
"  liglit  afflictions  for  an  eternal  vjelr/ht  of 

There  is  another  very  interesting  class 
of  whom  the  blessed  Jesus  is  far  from 
being  unmindful.  We  allude  to  those 
who  are  writing  bitter  things  against 
themselves,  who  feel  the  burden  of  their 
sins  to  be  intolerable,  who  are  seeking 
true  peace  by  a  diligent  use  of  the 
appointed  means  of  grace.  Such  should 
be  encouraged  to  persevere  in  hope  of 
obtaining  the  pearl  they  so  anxiously 
desire.  Let  them  listen  to  Heaven's 
inviting  voice,  addressing  their  peculiar 
state,  and  dry  up  their  tears.  "  Come 
unto  me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  Itolll  give  you  rest.''^  '^  If  any 
man  thirst,  let  him  come  unto  me  and 
drinhr^  While  you  are*  laying  aside 
every  weight  and  the  sin  that  so  easily 
besets  you,  continually  look  unto  Jesus. 

1  Mutt,  xi.,  28.  2  Juo.  vii.,  37. 


SER.    II.]  PEACE   IN    CHRIST.  51 

Never  lose  sight  of  the  cross,  the  Lamb 
of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the 
world,  for  he  alone  is  our  peace.  Shelter 
yourselves  under  the  protection  of  his 
atoning  blood,  and  you  shall  have  peace : 
your  darkness  shall  be  turned  into  light, 
your  mourning  into  songs  of  joy. 

But  in  what  terms  shall  we  address 
that  numerous  class  of  our  fellow-crea- 
tures, who  are  hewing  out  to  themselves 
cisterns,  broken  cisterns  that  can  hold  no 
water ;  who  are  enemies  to  God,  and  con- 
sequently, utter  strangers  to  true  peace. 
We  might  with  great  propriety  utter  forth 
the  terrible  threatenings  of  God's  word 
against  all  who  j)ersevere  in  their  rebel- 
lion against  his  government.  We  might 
refer  you  to  the  many  terrible  exhibitions 
of  his  wrath  upon  the  impenitent  in 
former  ages,  illustrative  of  the  truth, 
"  that  though  hand  join  in  hand^  the  wicked 
shall  not  he  impimished.''^     But  we  would 


^  Prov.  xi.;  22. 


52  PEACE   IN   CHRIST.  [SER.    II. 

rather  beseech  you  to  be  reconciled  to 
God  while  as  yet  mercy  may  be  sought, 
and  pardon  and  peace  obtained.  "W/to-e- 
fore  do  ye  spend  money  for  that  which  is 
not  hread,  and  your  labor  for  that  which 
satis fieth  not  ?  hearhen  diligently  unto  7??e/' 
saith  the  Lord.  "  and  eat  ye  that  lohiclt  is 
good,  and  let  your  soid  delight  itself  in  fat- 
ness. Incline  your  ear,  and  come  unto  me  ; 
hear  and  your  soid  shall  live^^ 

1  Isa.  Iv.,  2. 


SERMON     III. 

SPIRITUAL   PROSPERITY   OF   GAIUS. 

*'  The  elder,  unto  the  well-beloved  Gaius  whom  I  LOve 
IN   the   tkuth.     Beloved,   I  wish   above   all   things 

THAT  THOU  MAYEST  PROSPER  AND  BE  IN  HEALTH,  EVEN  AS 
THY  SOUL  PROSPERETH.  FOR  I  REJOICED  GREATLY  WHEN 
THE  BRETHREN  CAME  AND  TESTIFIED  OF  THE  TRUTH  THAT 
IS  IN  THEE,  EVEN  AS  THOU  WALKEST  IN  THE  TRUTH." 

3  Epis.  John  1,  2,  3  vs. 

This  epistle  is  addressed  to  some  con- 
verted Gentile  called  Gaius.  But  as 
there  are  tliree  persons  of  this  name 
mentioned  in  the  New  Testament,  there 
is  an  uncertainty  with  regard  to  the  one 
particularly  referred  to.  There  is  one 
Gaius  of  Corinthj  whom  St.  Paul  calls 
his  "  host,  and"  tlie  host  of  "  tlte  loliole 
GhuTcIir^  There  is  anotlier  named 
^  Kom.  xvi.  23. 


54  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIIIS.     [SER.  III. 

^  Gaius^  a  native  "  of  Macedonia,''^  who 
accompanied  St.  Paul,  and  spent  some 
lime  with  him  at  Ephesus.  There  is 
"  Oaius  of  Derhe,''^  who  also  was  a  fellow- 
traveller  of  the  Apostle  Paul.  It  is 
supposed,  however,  that  the  person  here 
particularly  addressed,  was  the  Gains 
of  Corinth,  as  hospitality  was  a  promi- 
nent feature  in  his  character.  The 
design  of  the  Apostle  in  writing  this 
epistle  to  Gains,  was  to  commend  his 
steadfastness  in  the  faith,  and  the  general 
hospitality  -he  had  shown,  especially,  to 
the  ministers  of  Christ.  In  carrying 
forward  this  design,  he,  in  the  mean 
time,  rebukes  one  Diotrephes,  who,  had 
arrogantly  assumed  the  chief  direction 
in  the  affairs  of  the  Church.  He  had 
not  only  refused  a  kind  reception  to 
those  messengers  of  peace  and  salvation 
himself,  but  had  hindered  them  from 
doing  so  who  were  thus  disposed.     The 

*  Acts,  xix.  29.  2  ^cts,  xx.  4. 


SER.  III.]     SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  55 

Apostle  also  commends  an  excellent 
person  named  Demetrius,  whom  he  pro- 
posed as  a  pattern  which  the  whole 
church  might  safely  imitate.  From  the 
high  commendation  here  so  cordially 
given  to  Gains,  he  must  have  been  uni- 
versally regarded  as  a  man  of  eminent 
piety,  one,  who  was  deeply  concerned  for 
the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  the  Church  ; 
one  who  endeavored  to  the  utmost  of  his 
ability  to  advance  the  cause  of  his 
Redeemer  in  the  world.  It  was  this 
that  so  greatly  endeared  him  to  the 
venerable  Apostle.  Hence  he  addresses 
him  with  all  the  tenderness  of  paternal 
affection  — "  Tlie  elder,  unto  tJie  iveU-he- 
loved  Oaius  whom  I  lave  in  the  truth,  or 
tridy  love." 

He  manifests  his  sincere  love  and 
regard  for  him  by  earnestly  praying  for 
his  prosperity,  both  in  a  temporal  and 
spiritual  point  of  view.  "  /  wish  above 
all  things^'  or  with  respect  to  all  things, 
"  that  thou  mayest  prosper  and  he  in  health 
even  as  thy  soid  pirospierethr 


56  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

Prayer  in  its  very  nature,  is  an 
acknowledgement  of  our  absolute  de- 
pendance  upon  God  for  the  blessings  we 
petition  at  his  hands.  St.  John,  fully 
realizing  the  truth,  that  "  every  good 
gift,  and  every  perfect  gift,  is  from  above, 
and  Cometh  down  from  the  Father  of 
lights,"  prays  that  "  Gains  might  prosper 
and  be  in  health."  Thus,  by  his  exam- 
ple, he  inculcates  upon  us  the  duty  of 
cultivating  the  spirit  of  dependance  upon 
God  for  success  in  all  our  endeavors,  to 
improve  either  our  temporal  or  spiritual 
interests.  The  worldly-minded  habitu- 
ally indulge  an  opposite  spirit.  They 
are  wise  in  their  own  wisdom,  and  strong 
in  their  own  strength.  Hence  they 
attribute  the  success  and  prosperity  of 
their  affairs  to  their  own  prudence  and 
foresight.  The  folly  and  danger  of  this 
lofty  spirit  Avere  awfully  exemplified  in 
that  eventful  crisis  in  the  history  of 
Nebuchadnezzar.  While  he  wall^ed 
abroad  in   his   palace,  revolving  with   a 


SEK.  III.]     SPIRIi;jTAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  57 

secret  complacency  his  grandeur  and 
magnificence,  saying  to  himself,  "  Is  not 
this  great  BahTjlon  that  I  have  huilt  for  the 
house  of  the  hlngdom,  hy  the  might  of  my 
"power^  and  for  the  honor  of  my  majesty  f'^ 
While  he  thus,  in  the  haughtiness  of 
pride  arrogated  all  the  glory  to  himself; 
a  voice  from  heaven  declared  to  him  that 
his  kingdom  was  departed  from  him, 
that  he  should  be  driven  from  men,  and 
his  dwelling  be  wdth  the  beasts  of  the 
field,  until  he  knew  that  the  Most  High 
ruled  in  the  kingdoms  of  men  and  gave 
them  to  whomsoever  he  would.  This 
proud  spirit  which  refuses  to  acknowledge 
its  dependance  upon  the  Creator,  the 
holy  scriptures  every  where  assure  us  is 
an  object  that  God  abominates  :  while  on 
the  other  hand,  the  spirit  manifested  by 
the  apostle,  he  highly  approbates.  "  God 
7'esisteth  the  proud,  hut  giveth  grace  unto  the 
humbler^ 

Gains,  in  behalf  of  w^hom  the  apostle 

1  Dan.  iv.  30.  ""  Jam.  iv.,  6. 


58  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

prays,  seems  to  have  been  very  prosperous 
Avith  regard  to  his  spiritual  state.  This 
appears, 

1st.  From  the  genuineness  of  his  faith. 
It  is  affirmed  that  "  tlie  truth  loas  in  him, 
and  that  he  walhed  in.  or  accordina'  to  the 
trulhr  Evangelical  faith  may  be  defined 
to  be,  a  hearty  belief  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Jesus.  It  is  not  a  cold  speculative 
principle,  floating  in  the  head  without 
influencing  the  heart  and  life.  It  is  a 
living,  active  principle,  regulating  the 
heart  and  outward  conduct  It  takes  the 
Lord  at  his  word.  It  influences  the  pos- 
sessor to  provide  against  the  evil  he 
threatens,  and  to  pursue  with  earnestness 
and  decision  the  good  he  promises.  For 
instance,  when  God  told  Noah  that  the 
end  of  all  flesh  had  come  before  him,  and 
that  he  was  about  to  deluge  the  earth 
with  a  flood;  Noah's  f^xitli  in  the  testi- 
mony of  God  influenced  him  to  provide 
against  the  threatened  evil  by  preparing 
an  ark  for  the  saving  of  his  house.    When 


SER.  III.]      SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  59 

Lot  was  commanded  to  leave  Sodom, 
being  informed  by  unquestionable  autho- 
rity that  the  Lord  would  destroy  the  city 
with  its  inhabitants ;  his  faith  led  him  to 
fioe  to  the  mountain,  the  divinely  ap- 
pointed place  of  refuge.  It  was  this  liv- 
ing, active  faith,  that  marked  the  character 
of  the  Christian  so  highly  commended  in 
the  passage  under  consideration. 

It  is  important  to  believe  all  the  cardi- 
nal doctrines  of  Chrisfianity,  such  as  the 
Divinity  of  Christ,  his  vicarious  sacrifice, 
the  necessity  of  repentance,  faith  and 
obedience ;  the  doctrines  of  future  rewards 
and  punishment.  But  it  is  not  enough 
speculatively  to  believe  these  truths;  it 
is  indispensable  that  we  have  a  realizing 
sense  of  the  great  importance  of  them  in 
their  personal  application ;  otherwise,  we 
shall  stand  justly  charged  with  having 
only  the  form  of  godliness  while  we  are 
destitute  of  the  power  thereof.  It  was 
not  thus  with  the  eminent  Christian  here 
proposed  as  a  pattern  worthy  of  imitation. 


60  SPIRITUAL  TROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.      [SER.  III. 

He  was  deeply  sensible  of  the  great  neces- 
sity of  personal  holiness.  Hence  his  faith 
led  him  to  "  renounce  the  devil  and  all 
his  works,  the  pomps  and  vanity  of  this 
wicked  world,"  and  to  present  himself  at 
the  throne  of  heavenly  grace,  where  he 
diligently  sought  and  in  due  time  found 
"  that  peace  which  the  world  cannot  give." 
And  having  "  the  Holy  Ghost  given  unto" 
him,  all  those  graces  that  adorn  and 
beautify  the  Christian  character,  viz., 
virtue,  knowledge,  temperance,  patience, 
brotherly-kindness,  charity,  all  these  were 
manifest  in  his  life  and  conduct.  For  it 
is  further  said  of  him,  that, 

2.  ''He  walked  in  the  truiJi.'"  His 
course  through  life  was  in  accordance 
with  the  requisitions  of  the  gospel.  He 
adorned  the  gospel  of  God  his  Saviour  by 
a  holy  walk  and  chaste  conversation — 
living  soberly,  righteously,  and  godly 
amidst  a  crooked  and  perverse  genera- 
tion. Though  he  could  not  have  regarded 
himself    as   having    attained   perlection, 


SER.  III.]     SPIRITUAL  PROSrERITY  OF  GAIUS.  61 

yet,  like  the  apostle  Paul,  who,  "for- 
getting those  things  that  are  behind,  and 
reaching  forth  unto  those  things  that 
are  before,  he  pressed  toward  the  mark 
for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of  God 
in  Christ  Jesus." 

The  bright  and  shining  example  set 
before  the  world  by  this  Christian, 
afforded  grounds  of  rejoicing  to  the  apos- 
tle John.  "  /  rejoiced  greatly,'^  says  he, 
"  wlten  the  hrethren  came  and  testified  of 
tlie  truth  that  is  in  thee,  even  as  thou 
walhest  in  the  truthr  While  it  is  always 
a  source  of  pleasure  to  a  gospel  minister 
to  witness  the  general  health  and  tem- 
poral prosperity  of  his  fellow-Christians, 
yet  does  it  afford  him  more  exquisite  joy, 
when  they  give  a  good  testimony  to  the 
truth,  by  their  walking  as  it  becomes  the 
gospel.  As  there  can  scarcely  be  a 
greater  obstacle  in  the  way  of  sinners 
duly  considering  the  claims  of  Chris- 
tianity, than  the  loose  and  irregular  lives 
of  those  who  professedly  say :  "  Lord,  Lord, 

6* 


62  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

and  do  not  the  things"  that  he  says ;  so, 
on  the  other  hand,  there  is  nothing  better 
calculated,  perhaps,  to  stop  the  mouths  of 
gainsay ers,  to  fasten  conviction  upon  the 
mind  of  the  ungodly,  than  the  consistent 
conduct  of  religious  professors.  They  are 
then  as  a  city  set  on  a  hill  that,  cannot  be 
hid — they  evince  to  all  around  that  reli- 
gion is  a  divine  reality,  and  not  a  cun- 
ningly devised  fable. 

In  the  character  of  Gains,  we  see  one 
who  used  the  world  as  not  abusing  it. 
lie  was  blessed  with  all  the  necessary 
comforts  and  conveniences  of  life,  and 
very  probably  upon  the  whole,  was  in  a 
very  prosperous  condition  as  it  regards 
temporal  matters ;  as  we  may  learn  from 
his  repeated  acts  of  kindness  ''tohretliren 
and  strangers^  There  were  many  to 
"  bear  witness  before  the  church,"  of  this 
praiseworthy  trait  in  his  character.  His 
prosperity  in  the  things  of  this  life  did 
not,  however,  j)rove  to  him  a  curse.  He 
did  not  suffer  the  things  of  this  world  to 


SER.  III.]     SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  63 

cheat  him  out  of  his  soul.  He  passed 
through  things  temporal,  so  as  not  to  lose 
those  things  that  are  eternal.  He  labored 
'^not  only  for  the  meat  that  perisheth, 
but  for  that  also  which  endureth  to  ever- 
lasting life."  His  soul  prospered.  The 
seed  of  divine  truth  sown  in  his  heart, 
sprung  up  and  brought  forth  the  fruit  of 
good  living  to  the  honor  and  glory  of 
God.  He  prospered  not  only  with  regard 
to  his  present  gracious  state,  but  also  with 
regard  to  his  future  prospects.  He  was 
laying  up  "treasures  in  heaven  where 
neither  moth  nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  and 
where  thieves  do  not  break  through  nor 
steal."  Truly  prosperous,  indeed !  A 
prosperity  which  nothing  on  earth  can 
destroy.  We  may  pass  along  here  for 
awhile  in  the  enjoyment  of  excellent 
health  of  body,  but  the  blighting  hand 
of  sickness  sooner  or  later  will  pros- 
trate the  most  vigorous  constitution.  We 
come  up  like  a  flower,  fair  and  beautiful, 
opening  and  expanding  the  faculties  by 


64  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

degrees ;  but  we  are  soon  cut  down  by  the 
scythe  of  some  ruthless  distemper,  or  nipt 
and  withered  by  the  frost  of  some  wasting 
weakness  and  decay.  We  may  prosper 
here  in  the  riches  of  the  world,  but  if 
they  do  not  take  to  themselves  wings 
and  flee  away  from  us,  how  soon  are 
we  hurried  away  from  them  into  the 
eternal  world  by  the  irresistible  arm 
of  death  ?  But  what  can  destroy  the 
prosperity  of  the  soul  ?  Can  sickness  ? 
No.  Can  death?  St.  Paul  triumphantly 
answers — No.  "  Fo?-  I  am  persuaded,'' 
says  he,  "  ihat  neither  deatJi,  nor  life,  nor 
angels,  nor  'principaliiies,  nor  j^oioers,  nor 
things  present,  nor  tilings  to  come,  nor 
height,  nor  depth,  nor  any  other  crreatiire, 
shall  he  ahle  to  separate  us  from  the  love  of 
God,  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord.'' 
Blessed,  yea,  thrice  blessed  is  the  man 
whose  soul  prospers. 

But  how  few  comparatively  are  in  this 
happy  condition.    You  will  all  agree  with 
^  Horn,  viii.,  88-39. 


SER.  III.]     SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  C5 

me  in  saying  that  their  souls  do  not  pros- 
per, who  are  in  a  state  of  nature,  unre- 
newed, unsanctified  by  the  influences  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  For  you  are  aware  that 
it  is  written  upon  the  inspired  pages  that, 
"'  the  wrath  of  Ood  ahidetli  urpon  tliemr 
They  are  represented  therein,  as  wan- 
derers upon  dark  and  barren  mountains 
without  a  shelter  and  perishing  with 
hunger.  Though  by  some  strange  infatua- 
tion, they  may  imagine  themselves  "Wc/i, 
increased  in  goods  and  have  need  of 
nothing,''  they  are  nevertheless  ''  loretched, 
and  miserahle,  and  ]DOor,  and  Mind  and 
nalzedr 

Nor  can  it  be  said  of  backsliders  that 
their  souls  prosper.  They  may  be  likened 
to  a  "  tree  whose  fruit  withereth."  "  The 
latter  end  is  worse  loith  them  than  the  begin- 
ning. For  it  had  heen  hetter  for  them  not 
to  have  hnown  the  loay  of  righteousness , 
than,  after  they  have  hnown  it,  to  turn 
from  the  holy  commandment  delivered  unto 
them.      Bid   it   has    happened   unto   them 


G6  SPIRITUAL  PROSrERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

according  to  the  true  proverh,  The  dog  is 
turned  to  his  oion  vomit  again;  and  the  sow 
that  loas  icashed  to  her  ivalloiuing  in  the 
mire.'''^  Nor  can  it  be  said  of  the  luke- 
warm Christian,  that  his  soul  prospers. 
He  is  self-condemned.  The  language  of 
his  agonizing  heart  is  : — 

<^  Where  is  the  blessedness  I  knew 

When  first  I  saw  the  Lord  r* 
Where  is  the  soul-refreshing  view 

Of  Jesus  and  his  word  ? 
What  peaceful  hours  I  then  enjoy'd, 

How  sweet  their  mem'ry  still ! 
But  now  I  feel  an  aching  void 

The  world  can  never  fill.'' 

The  luke-warm  professor  is  thus  ad- 
dressed by  the  great  Head  of  the  church  : 
"  /  tuoidd  thou  loei't  cold  or  hot^  lecause 
ihaub  art  hilce-warm,  and  neither  cold  or  liot, 
Ivjill  spue  thee  out  of  my  mouth  r^ 

The  man  of  whose  soul  prosperity  can 
be  truly  affirmed,  has  been  created  anew 

»  2d  Tut.  ii.,  21-22.         ''  llcv.  iii,,  15-lG. 


SER.  III.J     SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  67 

in  Christ  Jesus.  He  advances  in  the 
divine  life,  and  abounds  in  every  good 
word  and  work.  He  is  deeply  concerned 
not  only  for  his  own  personal  salvation, 
but  also  for  the  present  and  eternal  well- 
being  of  his  fellow-travellers  to  eternity. 
Hence  he  is  found  striving  to  the  utmost 
of  his  ability  to  advance  the  cause  of 
Christ  among  his  fellowmen.  He  is  eyes 
to  the  blind,  feet  to  the  lame,  a  messent^^er 
of  peace  and  consolation  to  the  distressed, 
whether  of  mind,  body  or  estate. 

We  should  above  all  things,  my  beloved 
brethren,  see  to  it  that  our  souls  prosper. 
It  is  very  proper  that  we  should  pray 
both  for  health  of  body  and  prosperity  in 
our  daily  avocations.  It  becomes  us  also 
to  be  diHgent  in  the  use  of  all  lawful 
means  in  order  to  obtain  them.  God, 
however,  in  his  wise  and  inscrutable  pro- 
vidence, may  not  see  fit  to  crown  our 
efforts  in  this  respect  with  desired  suc- 
cess. But  in  regard  to  the  spiritual 
prosperity  of  the  soul,  he   never  fails  to 


68  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

crown  persevering  diligence  with  success, 
Whoever  humbly  yields  to  the  life-giving 
and  fructifying  influences  of  that  Holy 
Spirit  which  is  to  abide  with  the  church 
forever,  is  sure  to  thrive  and  prosper, 
'^ike  a  tree  planted  by  the  water  side." 
Upon  the  soul  the  Creator  has  stamped 
his  seal  of  immortality — it  is  destined 
to  run  parallel  with  his  own  uncreated 
existence.  When  our  globe  shall  be  dis- 
solved, and  all  that  are  therein  shall  be 
burned  up,  the  soul,  more  refined  and 
dignified,  shall  survive  the  dissolution  of 
matter,  and  shall  either  flourish  in  im- 
mortal youth  and  beauty  on  the  healthful 
plains  of  Paradise,  or  endure  an  inde- 
scribable burden  of  anguish  in  the  doleful 
regions  of  endless  woe.  How  invaluable 
then  is  the  soul,  and  how  solemnly  press- 
ing are  its  claims  upon  our  most  serious 
regard.  Consider  what  the  great  Eternal 
has  done  to  promote  its  everlasting  health 
and  vigor.  He  himself  came  down  from 
heaven,  veiled  his  unutterable  glories  in 


SER.  III.J      SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.  69 

humanity,  proclaimed  his  own  everlasting 
gospel,  led  a  suffering  life,  died  an  igno- 
minious death,  rose  again  from  the  grave, 
"  ascended  up  on  high,  led  captivity  captive, 
and  gave  gifts  mito  men.  He  gave  some 
apostles,  and  some  prophets,  and  some  evan- 
gelists, and  some  pastors  and  teachers'' — 
"  For  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the 
ww'h  of  the  ministry,  for  the  edfying  of 
the  body  of  GlirisV,'^  "  the  Read,  from 
which  all  the  hody  hy  joints  and  hands 
having  nourishment  ministered,  and  hiit 
together,  increaseth  with  the  increase  of 
Godr^  Now,  who  among  us  in  this  view, 
does  not  perceive  something  of  the  incal- 
culable value  of  the  soul?  For  infinite 
wisdom  does  nothing  unnecessary.  And 
seeing  that  he  has  been  at  a  vast  expense 
of  means  in  behalf  of  our  souls,  it  shows 
the  awfulness  of  the  peril  to  which  they 
are  exposed.  It  accounts  for  that  solemn 
and  thrilling  question  propounded  by 
himself: — "  What  shall  a  man  give  in 
'  Eph.  iv.,  12.  '  Col.  ii.,  19. 


70  SPIRITUAL  PROSPERITY  OF  GAIUS.     [SER.  III. 

exchange  for  his  soul?'''  Nothing  can  be 
compared  to  it  in  value.  Lose  that,  and 
you  lose  your  all.  I  beseech  you  there- 
fore to  attend  earnestly  to  its  high  con- 
cerns. Beware  of  unbelief,  pride,  preju- 
dice, envy  and  malice.  These  are  the 
briers  that  render  the  soul  barren,  and 
prevent  the  word  of  divine  truth  from 
being  so  ingrafted  into  the  heart  as  to 
bring  forth  fruit  to  the  honor  and  glory 
of  God.  Seek  diligently  the  influences 
of  that  Spirit  who  alone  can  cause  the 
native  desert  of  the  heart  to  bud  and 
blossom  as  the  rose ;  and  having  the 
heavenly  graces  implanted  therein  by 
his  own  right  hand,  and  abounding  in 
the  same  w^hen  this  painful  life  shall 
end,  you  may  look  forward  in  hope  of 
being  conveyed  to  that  bright  world 
where  the  soul  no  longer  clogged  in  her 
devotional  exercises  by  frail  humanity, 
shall  expand  and  grow  more  and  more 
like  God  through  everlasting  ages. 


SEEM  ON     lY. 


MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE   AND   FORGIVENESS. 


Forbearing  one  another,  and  forgiving  one  another, 
if  any  man  have  a  quarrel  against  any  ;  even  as 
Christ  forgave  you,  so  also  do  ye." — Col.    iii.,    13. 


In  this  world,  where  sin  has  dominion 
over  the  hearts  of  the  great  mass  of  man- 
kind, and  influences  in  some  measure  the 
regenerate,  there  will  always  be  numerous 
occasions  that  will  call  for  the  exercise  of 
mutual  forbearance,  and  the  spirit  of  for- 
giveness. Occasions  will  arise  not  only 
among  the  ungodly,  but  also  among 
those  who,  in  the  general  tenor  of  their 
lives,  are  governed  by  Christian  princi- 
ples. To  resent  injuries,  either  real  or 
supposed,  is  natural  to  man.  The  ob- 
vious design  of  this  characteristic  of  our 


72  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

nature,  is  to  guard  us  from  real  injuries. 
When  we  suffer  it  to  proceed  no  further 
than  to  shield  ourselves  from  real  harm, 
it  is  not,  as  we  conceive,  criminal.  For 
instance : — A  person  endeavors  to  instil 
into  the  mind  of  another,  principles 
known  by  him  to  be  dangerous  in  them- 
selves, and  destructive  in  their  conse- 
quences. Now,  should  a  holy  indigna- 
tion arise  in  his  mind  against  such  prin- 
ciples, from  the  view  of  their  injurious 
character,  this  resentment, .  so  far  from 
being  criminal,  would  be  just,  properly 
directed,  and  in  strict  compHance  with 
the  exhortation  of  St.  James,  "  Resist  tlie 
devil,  and  he  tviU  flee  from  you!''^  When 
resentment  is  suffered  to  go  so  far  as  to 
injure  others  merely  for  the  sake  of  gra- 
tifying this  feeling,  or  as  a  retaliation  for 
some  wrong  done,  or  supposed  to  be  done 
to  us,  then  it  is  highly  criminal.  In  02> 
position  to  this  spirit,  we  are  exhorted  in 

•  James  iv.,  7. 


SER.    IV.]  AND    FORGIVENESS.  73 

the  text  to  cultivate  the  temper  and 
spirit  of  mutual  forbearance  and  forgive- 
ness. "  Forbearing  one  another  and  forgiv- 
ing one  anotJier,  if  any  man  have  a  quarrel 
against  any,  even  as  Christ  forgave  you,  so 
also  do  ye!' 

This  exhortation,  you  perceive,  is  ad- 
dressed to  professing  Christians.  It  sup- 
poses that  the  spirit  of  resentment  may  be 
carried  to  a  criminal  extent  even  among 
them,  thus  giving  occasion  among  them- 
selves for  the  exercise  of  the  conciliatory 
temper  recommended  in  the  text. 

To  injure  a  person,  is  unlawfully  to 
take  or  withhold  from  him  that  to  which 
he  has  a  just  claim.  To  deprive  one  of 
life,  liberty,  or  his  personal  or  real  estate, 
which  he  has  not  forfeited  by  crime,  is 
the  grossest  violation  of  this  principle. 
No  one,  we  presume,  can  consistently 
bear  the  Christian's  name,  who  is  guilty 
in  either  of  these  respects.  But  there 
are  other  respects  in  which  we  may  injure 

7* 


74  •  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

our  neighbor,  without  depriving  him  of 
either  his  life,  liberty  or  property.  We 
may  injure  him  hy  raslt  and  precipitate 
judging,  hy  indulging  uncharitable  thoughts^ 
and  hy  evil  spealzing. 

1.  Eash  and  precipitate  judging. 

Perhaps  nothing  is  more  common  than 
for  men  to  form  an  unfavorable  opinion 
of  their  neighbor  upon  the  slightest 
acquaintance;  yet,  this  is  equally  inju- 
rious as  it  is  unjust.  To  pronounce 
unfavorably  upon  the  general  character 
of  a  person  from  some  single  fault  we 
may  discover,  or  think  we  discover,  is 
certainly  injuring  him,  inasmuch  as  it  is 
withholding  from  him  that  esteem,  which 
his  other  good  qualities  justly  demand, 
even  suppose  him  to  be  faulty  in  other 
respects.  For  who  is  there  without  fault? 
Perhaps  there  are  few  men  so  bad,  but 
that  may  possess  some  good  traits  of 
character.  Lest  we  should  be  misun- 
derstood   here,  it   may  be   necessary  to 


SER.    IV.]  AND    FORGIVENESS.  75 

observe,  that,  in  speaking  of  the  good 
traits  in  the  character  of  a  bad  man,  all 
that  we  mean  is,  that  they  are  good  in 
their  effects ;  not  that  they  are  positively 
good  in  their  nature  and  regarded  so  in 
the  sight  of  God.  No  action  of  an 
accountable  being  can  be  intrinsically 
good,  good  in  the  sight  of  our  Maker, 
that  does  not  proceed  from  a  proper 
motive,  a  due  sense  of  our  obligations  to 
Him.  The  high  and  holy  principle  that 
should  govern  us  in  our  actions  is  thus 
stated  by  the  great  apostle  to  the  Gen- 
tiles :  — "  Whether,  therefore,  ye  eat  or 
driiiJvj  or  lohatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to  the 
glory  of  Qod!'  ^  The  same  apostle,  show- 
ing how  indispensable  it  is  that  we  should 
have  a  constant  regard  to  this  holy  prin- 
ciple, also  says  : — ^'Though  Ihesioio  all  my 
goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and  though  I  give  my 
hody  to  he  hurned,  and  have  not  charity,  it 
profiteth  one  notJiing.''^     The  loth  Article 

a  Cor.  X.,  31.  2  2  Cor.  xiii.,  3. 


76  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

of  our  church  is  in  perfect  accordance 
•with  this  statement  of  St.  Pauh  "  Works 
done  before  the  grace  of  Christ,  and  the 
inspiration  of  his  Spirit,  are  not  pleasant 
to  God,  forasmuch  as  they  spring  not 
of  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  neither  do  they 
make  men  meet  to  receive  grace,  or  (as  the 
school  authors  say,)  deserve  grace  of  con- 
gruity :  yea,  rather,  for  that  they  are  not 
done  as  God  has  Avilled  and  commanded 
them  to  be  done,  we  doubt  not  but  they 
have  the  nature  of  sin."  So,  in  this  view, 
nothing  done  by  an  impenitent  man  can  be 
really  good.  In  another  point  of  view  he 
may,  however,  do  something  that  may  be 
called  good,  from  the  good  eflects  result- 
ing therefrom.  A  liberal  contribution, 
for  instance,  may  be  cheerfully  given  to 
some  educational  institution,  or  for  reli- 
gious purposes.  This  may  be  the  means 
of  promoting  the  present  and  eternal 
happiness  of  thousands  of  our  race.  An 
unregenerate  person  may  do  this,  and 
other  kindred  acts,  and  in  view  of  their 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  77 

beneficial  effects;  they  may  in  a  qualified 
sense,  be  denominated  good.  The  point 
however  to  which  we  would  arrive,  is 
this : — If  unregenerate  men  may  have 
some  commendable  traits  in  their  charac- 
ter, how  much  more  ground  is  there  to 
regard  those  in  a  favorable  hght,  who  are 
in  some  good  degree,  renewed  by  the 
Spirit  ?  So,  for  Christians  to  pronounce 
unfixvorably  upon  the  general  character 
of  their  brethren,  simply  on  the  ground 
of  some  fault  they  may  discover,  or  think 
they  discover,  is  to  injure  them  seriously. 
It  is  to  withhold  from  them  that  affec- 
tionate regard  which  their  other  good 
qualities  justly  demand.  Persons  who 
are  given  to  this  uncharitable  turn, 
require  but  little  evidence;  indeed,  what 
they  require,  is  undeserving  the  name  of 
evidence;  all  they  require,  in  order  to 
bring  their  minds  to  a  decision  upon  the 
general  character  of  their  neighbor,  is 
only  to  see,  or  think  they  see,  in  him 
some  slight  deviation  from  their  precon- 


78  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

ceiv^ed  notions  of  propriety.  Should  his 
peculiar  manner,  or  mode  of  address  not 
happen  to  be  in  strict  accordance  with 
their  ideas  of  refinement,  immediately, 
an  unfavorable  inference  is  drawn  with 
regard  to  his  taste.  Should  an  opinion 
be  expressed  on  a  certain  subject,  though 
that  opinion  should  not  be  the  result  of 
much  deliberation,  but  expressed  at  the 
impulse  of  the  moment,  no  allowance 
whatever  is  made  for  this ;  a  broad 
inference  is  at  once  made,  utterly  preju- 
dicial to  the  whole  character.  Again, 
should  a  professor  of  religion,  in  an 
unguarded  hour,  manifest  undue  warmth 
of  feeling,  why,  he  is  denounced  at  once 
as  a  hypocrite,  utterly  destitute  of  every 
spark  of  vital  piety.  Such  imperfections 
as  these,  give  a  sufficient  warrant  to  the 
uncharitable,  to  cast  a  shade  over  the 
whole  character.  How  common  is  this 
spirit  of  rash  and  precipitate  judging 
of  others  exhibited,  not  only  among  the 
ungodly,   but    among    the    professed    fol- 


y^ 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  79 

lowers  of  Christ.  But  what  is  more 
unequitable  and  unjust?  How  far  is  this 
from  complying  with  that  golden  rule : — 
"  Whatsoever  ye  looidd  that  men  should  do 
to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  themr  ^ 

Furthermore,  this  rash  and  precipitate 
judging,  leads, 

2.  To  the  indulging  of  unkind,  cold 
and  bitter  feelings.  Our  feelings  in  every 
instance,  are  regulated  by  our  belief.  To 
this  general  statement,  I  reckon  there 
can  be  found  no  exception.  In  all  cases, 
our  feelings  correspond  with  our  belief. 
Hence  a  child,  believing  the  testimony  of 
others,  concerning  the  venomous  nature 
of  a  viper,  indulges  a  secret  antipathy 
towards  it,  though  he  may  never  have 
seen  anything  more  of  the  reptile  than  its 
picture.  It  is  needless  to  enumerate  in- 
stances to  illustrate  so  plain  a  principle  of 
our  nature.  It  must  be  admitted  by  all 
who  will  reflect  for  a  moment,  that  as  we 

1  Matt,  vii.,  12. 


80  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

believe,  so  do  we  feel  and  act.  Here  we 
are  disposed  to  digress  a  little,  in  order 
to  make  a  useful  reflection.  We  would 
observe,  that  Christianity  is  in  strict 
accordance  with  the  laws  of  our  nature. 
Are  we  so  constituted,  that  we  feel  and 
act  as  we  believe  ?  See  then  how  Chris- 
tianity is  adapted  to  this  law  of  our 
moral  nature,  attaching  as  it  does,  so 
much  importance  to  fliith  in  God. 
"  Without  faW I  it  is  impossible  toj^Iease  Him, 
for  lie  that  cometli  to  Ood,  must  helieve  tJtat 
He  is,  and  that  He  is  a  reioarder  of  them  that 
diligently  seeh  HimT'^  "  Therefore,  being 
justified  bij  faith,  we  have  peace  with  God, 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ!'^  As 
faith,  or  belief,  produces  corresponding 
feelings  or  actions  in  temporal  matters, 
so  has  it  the-  same  effect  in  spiritual 
things.  And  how  clearly  does  the  wis- 
dom and  goodness  of  God  shine  forth  in 
this  view  of  the  Christian  system.  His 
wisdom,  in  appointing  faith  as  an  instru- 
^  IIc^rc^v,s,  xi.,  G.  "  Ituin.  v.,  1. 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  81 

ment  in  our  salvation,  it  being  from  its 
active   nature,  every  way  calculated   to 
produce  the  desired  effect,  viz.,  obedience. 
His   goodness    is    seen    in    adapting   his 
saving  plan    to   the  constitution    of  our 
nature,    thus     rendering    our    salvation 
attainable  in  perfect   harmony  with  the 
law  of  our  moral  being.     But  to  return 
to  the  inference  that  we  were   about  to 
make.     As  we  feel  and  act  as  we  believe, 
so,  when  a  rash  and  precipitate  judgment 
is   formed,  with   regard    to   the    general 
character  of  our  brother,  we,  as  a  natural 
consequence,  feel    and  act  towards   him 
accordingly ;    unless  w^e    be    deceitful  — 
uttering   smooth    words    with    the    lips, 
while  there  is  war  in  the  heart.     Do  we 
believe  him  to  be   a  time-serving,  popu- 
larity seeking  creature,  unstable,  driven 
and  tossed  about  by  every  wind,  no  mat- 
ter from  what  point  it  blows  ?     Now,  if 
we  have  come  to  this  conclusion  concern- 
ing  his   character,    and    have   any  just 
views  of  what  is  praiseworthy  in  man,  it 

8 


82  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER,    IV. 

is  impossible  to  esteem,  or  to  place  any 
confidence  in  such  an  one.  If  we  have, 
from  some  cause,  been  led  to  regard  a 
professor  of  religion  as  a  hypocrite,  and 
have  just  views  of  what  is  becoming  the 
Christian,  so  far  from  cherishing  in  our 
bosom,  sentiments  of  esteem  for  his  cha- 
racter, we  wdll  behold  him  in  all  his 
religious  performances,  with  pain  and 
disgust.  We  mention  these  instances, 
as  specimens  of  unkind  feelings  following 
in  the  train  of  unfavorable  opinions 
formed  of  our  fellow-men.  Having 
arrived  at  an  unfavorable  decision  with 
regard  to  the  character  of  our  brother, 
and  unkind  and  bitter  feelings  being  now 
generated  in  the  heart,  the  next  step  is 
to  proceed. 

3.  To  evil  speaking. — This  naturally  fol- 
lows. When  unkind  feelings  are  indulged 
towards  any  of  our  brethren,  it  will  soon 
be  made  manifest  by  unkind  words. 
"  Oat  of  the  ahuiK lance  of  the  heart,''  says 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  83 

our  Lord,  "  tlie  mouth  speaheihr^  The 
faults  uncharitably  conceived  of  our 
neighbor,  are  now  ungenerouslj^  exposed ; 
exposed,  too,  while  he  has  no  opportunity 
of  explaining,  or  of  defending  himself,  for 
it  is  now  done  in  his  absence.  These  faults 
are  exposed,  not  to  secure  themselves 
from  injury,  but  to  injure  their  neighbor, 
to  lower  the  esteem  that  others  may 
have  towards  him,  and  thus  gratify  that 
malignant  spirit  which  is  far  below  the 
Christian  character.  The  tongue  now  is 
set  in  operation,  and  when  that  is  the 
case,  soon  a  great  fire  is  kindled  from 
a  little  matter.  The  tale-bearer  now  has 
his  legitimate  work  to  do.  He  listens 
attentively,  occasionally  smiles,  with  his 
ears  wide  open  as  he  smiles,  and  when 
he  gets  as  much  as  he  can  conveniently 
carry,  he  shoulders  his  burden,  away  he 
goes  and  lodges  it  at  his  neighbor's  door. 
By  adding  a  little,  and  saying  with  a  sig- 
nificant nod, — I  would  not  take  it  if  I 
^  Matt,  xii.,  34. 


84  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

were  yon,  lie  succeeds  in  kindling  a  blaze. 
Families,  neighbors,  and  intimate  com- 
panions, are  now  at  variance,  indulging 
the  spirit  of  revenge,  hatred  and  malice, 
for,  they  can  scarcely  tell  what.  And 
were  the  true  cause  ascertained,  it 
would  in  most  instances  be  found  to 
have  originated  from  a  wrong  judgment 
rashly  formed;  from  some  word  inad- 
vertently spoken,  or  some  action  in  the 
performance  of  which,  there  was  no  evil 
design  whatever.  Now,  it  is  in  these 
ways  that  we  may  injure,  and  be  injured 
by  others;  and  our  duty  as  Christians, 
is,  on  all  occasions  to  be  ready  to  exer- 
cise the  spirit  of  mutual  forbearance  and 
forgiveness.  ^'  Forhearing  one  another,  and 
forgiving  one  another,  if  any  man  have  a 
quarrel  against  any,  even  as  Christ  forgave 
you,  so  also  do  ye'' 

We  proceed  to  a  few  considerations 
that  should  induce  us  to  cultivate  this 
spirit. 


SER.    IV.]  AND    FORGIVENESS.  85 

1.  We  should  recollect  how  apt  we 
are  to  be  mistaken  in  our  judgment  of 
the  general  character  of  a  person  even 
after  a  patient  observation,  much  more 
so  upon  a  slight  and  single  circumstance. 
Joseph  was  reared  under  the  same  roof 
with  his  brothers;  they,  therefore,  had 
a  fair  opportunity  to  investigate  his 
character ;  yet,  see  how  grossly  mistaken 
they  were  respecting  it.  Because  he 
related  to  them  his  remarkable  dream, 
that  "  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars,  made 
obeisance  to  Jiim,''  they  regarded  him  as 
an  ambitious  youth,  who  desired  to 
exalt  himself  over  them.  *  To  arrive  at 
a  correct  decision  at  all  times  with 
regard  to  the  character  of  our  neighbor, 
requires  more  knowledge  than  God  has 
granted  to  man.  Are  we  fully  acquainted 
with  the  constitutional  make  of  any  indi- 
vidual? Do  we  know  his  peculiar  turn 
of  thinking?  Can  we  dive  down  into 
the  depth  of  his  soul,  and  see  the  first 
moving  spring  of  action,  and  pronounce 

8* 


86  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

with  infallible  certainty  with  respect  to 
its  moral  character?  Do  we  know  the 
precise  effect  that  early  impressions  have 
had  upon  his  mind,  and  exactly  to  what 
extent  allowance  is  to  be  made  on  this 
score?  Oar  profound  ignorance  in  all 
these  particulars,  shows  how  apt  we  are 
to  be  mistaken  in  our  notions  of  the  true 
character  of  our  neighbor,  and  should 
lead  us  in  no  case  to  judge  rashly.  And 
should  we,  after  a  cool,  patient,  and 
impartial  investigation,  be  compelled  to 
decide  unfavorably,  we  should  even  then, 
pass  a  decision  with  extreme  diffidence — 
with  that  ''charity  that  helieveth  all  tJfWf/s, 
hopetli  all  tl tings r  In  many  instances,  no 
doubt,  where  the  uncharitable  has  cast  a 
shade  of  reproach,  could  lie  see  the  whole 
man  as  he  is  seen  by  his  supreme  Judge ; 
shame  would  cover  his  face,  to  find  that 
the  very  person  he  thouglit  so  little  of, 
was  at  th-e  very  same  time  far  above  him 
in  moral  excellence. 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  87 

2.  As  we  are  apt  to  be  mistaken  in 
onr  judgment  with  regard  to  the  general 
character  of  persons,  so  are  we  equally  so 
with  regard  to  their  evil  intentions.  An 
offence  is  taken  from  something  that  has 
been  said  or  done  to  us.  Now  what  has 
been  said  or  done,  may  not  have  been 
the  result  of  either  ill-will  or  malice.  It 
may  have  been  the  result  of  a  wrong 
judgment  they  had  hastily  formed,  or 
from  some  excited  state  of  mind  they 
may  have  been  led  to  say,  or  act  as  they 
did.  Such  considerations  should  have  a 
tendency  to  cool  our  resentment,  espe- 
cially when  we  reflect  that  we  are 
equally  liable  to  be  influenced  in  the 
same  way.  And  besides,  they  may  have 
seriously  considered  their  conduct,  and 
have  mourned  and  wept  bitterly  in  secret 
on  account  of  it. 

Another  reason  wliy  Christians  should 
cultivate  a  forgiving  spirit,  is — 

■3.  God's  forgiving  mercy  towards  tliem. 


88  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

All  of  US  have  offended  our  Creator,  by 
violating  Lis  law  in  thought,  word  and 
deed,  ten  thousand  times.  We  have  of- 
fended him  under  circumstances  the  most 
aggravated,  against  light  and  knowledge, 
amidst  all  the  loud  calls  of  his  providence, 
his  word,  the  strivings  of  his  Spirit,  and 
the  clamors  of  conscience.  We  have 
thus  rendered  ourselves  obnoxious  to  his 
wrath  and  sore  displeasure ;  but  upon 
repentance,  he  manifested  to  you  his 
forgiving  mercy.  When  he  saw  you 
writing  bitter  things  against  yourselves, 
mourning  in  sackcloth  and  ashes,  he  ap- 
pointed unto  you  the  oil  of  joy  for 
mourning,  and  the  garment  of  praise  for 
the  spirit  of  heaviness.  And  shall  we 
who  have  been  forgiven,  and  daily  stand 
in  need  of  forgiveness,  not  be  ready  to 
forgive  others?  If  the  eternal  God  act 
in  the  same  way,  what  will  become  of 
us  ?  Kemember  the  words  of  our  blessed 
Lord  : — "  If  ye  forgive  not  men  their  tres- 
passeSy    neither   will    your    Father  forcjive 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  89 

your  trespasses''^  As  we  desire  forgiveness 
at  the  hands  of  our  heavenly  Father,  let 
us  see  to  it  that  we  cultivate  the  spirit  of 
forgiveness  towards  our  brethren. 


How  are  we  to  forgive  ? 

To  this,  the  apostle  answers  in  the  lat- 
ter clause  of  the  text,  "  As  Christ  forgave 
you,  so  also  do  ye' 

How  does  he  forgive? 

1.  He  forgives  universally.  His  lan- 
guage is — "  Tliy  sins  which  are  many,  are 
forgivenr''  We  should  imitate  Christ  in 
this  respect.  We  should  make  no  re- 
serves, but  forgive  all  and  every  one  of 
our  brother's  offences  against  us. 

2.  Christ  sincerely  forgives ; — He  never 
upbraids  us  for  those  sins  he  once  forgives. 
He  blots  out  the  hand-writing  against  us. 
He  remembers  our  sins  against  us  no 
more.  There  is  a  pretended  forgiveness 
that  falls   from    the    lips  only,    Avithout 

1  Matt,  li.,  15.  2  Lu]^e  vii.,  47,  48. 


90  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE  [SER.    IV. 

flowing  from  the  heart.  You  may  have 
frequently  heard  persons  profess  to  for- 
give in  terms  like  the  following.  I  par- 
don him  for  what  he  has  done  to  me ;  I 
only  wish  the  poor  creature  may  be  able 
to  forgive  himself  I  leave  him  to  God 
and  his  own  conscience.  Now  this  disco- 
vers a  want  of  sincerity,  and  shows  an 
inward  bitterness  of  spirit,  utterly  at 
variance  with  a  forgiving  temper.  This 
is  not  the  way  that  Clnist  forgives  : — He 
forgives  sincerely.  '^  Let  tJiis  mind  he  in 
you  wliicJi  was  also  in  Christ  Jesusr 

How  amiable  and  benign  is  the  spirit 
of  Christianity  !  Like  its  divine  author? 
its  high  mission  is  to  promote  true  peace, 
good  order  and  happiness  among  men.  In 
what  a  glorious  state  w^ould  be  our  world, 
were  it  entirelj^  under  its  holy  influence. 
Earth  then,  would  be  but  the  counterpart 
of  heaven.  If  all  cultivated  the  spirit  of 
forbearance  and  forgiveness^  where  there 
is  now  strife,  contentions,  animosities  and 
revenge,    the    angel    of  peace,    with   his 


SER.    IV.]  AND   FORGIVENESS.  91 

celestial  train  of  meekness,  gentleness, 
brotherly  kindness  and  charity,  would 
reign  predominant  in  every  bosom.  But 
alas!  how  little  of  this  spirit  is  found 
among  men  ;  how  little  even  among  the 
professed  followers  of  Christ.  What  a 
readiness  to  put  the  worst  construction 
upon  the  actions  of  the  brethren.  How 
prevalent  is  whispering,  tale-bearing,  and 
evil-speaking.  What  a  satanic-like  plea- 
sure there  is  taken  in  circulating  the  tale 
of  slander  to  the  great  injury  of  our 
neighbor. 

My  brethren,  these  things  ought  not  so 
to  be.  You  are  called  to  the  cultivation  of 
an  opposite  temper,  by  the  most  endear- 
ing considerations.  As  children  of  one 
family  you  reverently  bow  down  at  the 
same  table,  partake  of  the  same  bread, 
drink  of  the  same  cup,  and  profess  to  be 
travelling  to  the  same  eternal  home.  In 
that  blissful  place,  you  expect  to  unite 
with  all  the  redeemed  of  the  Lord,  in  the 
same  song : — "  Unto  him  that  loved  us  and 


92  MUTUAL   FORBEARANCE.  [SER.    IV. 

washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his  own  hlood, 
and  hath  made  us  Icings  and  priests  unto 
God  and  his  Father,  to  Him  he  glory  and 
dominion  forever  and  everT^  How  rea- 
sonable therefore  is  it  that  you  should 
cherish  for  each  other  on  your  journey 
thitherward,  the  same  feelings  of  bro- 
therly kindness.  "  Forhearing  one  ano- 
ther, and  forgiving  one  another,  if  any 
man  have  a  quarrel  against  any,  even  as 
Christ  forgave  you,  so  also  do  ye^ 

^  Eev.  i.,  5. 


SERMON    y. 

THE  SIN  OF  GRIEVING  THE  HOLY  SPIRIT. 

"  AND  GRIEVE  NOT   THE    HOLT  SPIRIT  OF  GOD."      Eph.  iv.  30. 

Grief,  as  well  as  all  other  affections  of 
the  human  heart  which  we  find  applied 
in  the  Scriptures  to  the  Spirit  of  God, 
must  necessarily  be  understood  in  a  meta- 
phorical sense.  It  especially  refers  to  his 
mode  of  acting  towards  those  who  resist 
his  influences,  reject  his  kind  offers,  and 
not  to  any  inward  feeling  which  the  term 
implies  when  it  relates  to  finite  man. 
With  the  course  generally  pursued  by  one 
w^ho  from  just  cause  has  been  grieved  at 
the  conduct  of  another,  we  are  perfectly 
familiar.  Between  this  course  and  the 
conduct  of  the  Spirit  towards  man  in  cer- 
tain cases  a  comparison  is  here  instituted. 


94  THE    SIN    OF   GRIEMNG  [SER.    V. 

When  an  earthly  friend  and  benefactor 
becomes  grieved  in  consequence  of  receiv- 
ing from  his  beneficiary  insults  in  return 
for  the  many  favors  bestowed,  he  with- 
draws all  intimacy  and  friendship  from 
such  an  one,  until  the  barriers  that  stand 
in  the  way  of  a  reconciliation  are  entirely 
removed.  Now,  the  Holy  Spirit  is  the 
Almighty  Friend  and  liberal  Benefactor 
of  our  fallen  and  degenerate  race.  But 
man  too  often  requites  his  surpassing 
kindness  and  benevolence  by  acting  in  a 
way  that  causes  the  blessed  Spirit  to 
withdraw  his  enlightening  and  renovating 
influences,  leaving  him  in  his  own  native 
blindness  and  ignorance,  to  pursue  the 
"  loay  that  seemeth  rigliV  unto  him,  though 
the  "  lijays  thereof  be  the  ^'  %(^aiis  of  death!' 
We  are  therefore  to  understand  the  text 
as  containing  a  solemn  admonition  against 
every  thing  that  would  hinder  the  success 
of  this  divine  agent  in  his  gracious  and 
renewing  operations  upon  the  soul. 

The  Spirit  of  God,  the  third  person  in 


SEE.    v.]  THE   HOLY   SPIRIT.  95 

the  ever-adorable  Trinity,  is  called  ^  lioly' 
because  of  the  infinite  holiness  of  his 
character,  and  of  the  work  of  holiness 
which  he  begins  and  carries  on  in  the 
hearts  of  his  people.  All  the  moral  attri- 
butes; justice,  goodness  and  truth,  are 
possessed  by  him  in  common  with  the 
Father  and  the  Son,  in  unbounded  per- 
fection. In  the  economy  of  redemption, 
the  Holy  Spirit  is  the  grand  agent  whose 
office  is  to  establish  these  principles  of 
holiness  in  the  souls  of  men.  In  order  to 
this,  "  he  spake  by  the  prophets,"  inspired 
the  apostles  from  whose  sacred  writings 
we  may  obtain  right  conceptions  of  the 
character  of  God,  and  of  his  will  concern- 
ing us.  He  is  still  present  in  his  church, 
to  own  and  bless  his  word,  and  the  ordi- 
nances of  his  house  to  the  spiritual  edifi- 
cation of  all  who  yield  to  his  gracious 
dictates.  His  success,  however,  is  far  from 
being  universal.  Though  we  have  every 
reason  to  believe  from  the  infinitude  of 
his  benevolence,  that  there  is  not  a  human 


96  THE    SIN   OF   GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

being  on  earth  at  the  door  of  whose  heart 
he  has  not  repeatedly  knocked  for  en- 
trance ;  yet  we  find  only  here  and  there 
a  few,  comparatively,  who  have  cordially 
submitted  to  the  empire  of  his  grace. 
The  generality  of  men  oppose  him  at 
every  avenue  through  which  he  is  wont 
to  gain  the  ascendancy  in  the  soul,  and 
thus  cause  him,  so  to  speak,  to  turn  away 
grieved  at  the  obduracy  and  impenitency 
of  their  hearts.  I  am  sure  that  I  now 
speak  the  experience  of  many  of  our 
hearers.  In  order  that  you  may  through 
the  divine  blessing  be  brought  to  a  due 
sense  of  the  awful  guilt  you  are  incurring, 
and  of  the  danger  to  which  you  are  thus 
exposing  yourselves,  we  shall  endeavor  to 
point  out  some  of  the  ways  in  which  men 
'  (jrieve  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God! 
This  is  done, 

1.  By  inconsideration.  The  want  of 
calm,  sober  thought,  is  one  of  the  greatest 
hinderances  to  a  sinner's  conversion  to  God. 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  97 

The  thunders  of  Sinai  may  roll,  and  tell 
him  of  those  eternal  calamities  that  await 
the  ungodly  beyond  the  grave ;  the  sweet 
notes  of  redeeming  love  poured  forth  from 
an  angel's  voice  will  all  be  in  vain,  so 
long  as  the  adversary  of  souls  can  contrive 
to  keep  him  from  a  train  of  regular,  sober 
thinlving.  The  great  Jehovah  thus  com- 
plained of  his  ancient  people.  "/  have 
nourished  and  hrought  up  children,  and 
they  have  rebelled  against  me.  The  ox 
Icnoioeth  his  otmier,  and  the  ass  his  master's 
crih :  hut  Israel  doth  not  hnoio  my  people 
doth  not  consider T'^  The  same  complaint 
may  be  justly  entered  now.  Against 
every  impenitent  soul  here  in  divine  pre- 
sence, the  Holy  Sjiirit  may  justly  urge 
the  want  of  due  consideration,  as  the 
great  reason  why  his  holy  influences  have 
not  hitherto  had  their  designed  effect  in 
each  case.  God  has  made  our  salvation 
to  depend  upon  a  cordial  and  hearty  be- 
lief of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.     "  With, 

^Isa.  i.,2,  3. 
9* 


98  THE    SIN    OF    GRIEVING  [SER.    V- 

theJieart  man  helieveth  unto  rujliteousnessr'^ 
But  we  cannot  thus  heJieve  the  truth,  unless 
we  luiclerstand,  or  realize  it  in  its  personal 
application  :  nor  can  we  thus  understand 
it  when  presented  to  our  minds  unless  we 
bestow  upon  it  due  thought  andVeflection. 
Thus  you  perceive  how  the  thoughtless 
sinner  defeats,  if  we  may  so  speak,  the 
purposes  of  divine  grace.  When  the 
Holy  Spirit  presents  to  the  impenitent 
mind  divine  truth,  when  he  shows  him 
his  own  character,  his  depraved  and  sinful 
state  and  the  awful  consequences  that 
will  inevitably  follow,  when  he  discovers 
unto  him  the  character  of  God,  his  holi- 
ness, justice  and  truth,  instead  of  his 
dwelling  upon  these  truths  in  serious, 
sober  and  penitential  thought,  Wiey  are 
excluded  from  the  mind  to  make  room 
for  subjects  of  a  frivolous  nature.  So,  the 
Heavenly  Visitor  is  thus  grieved  and 
insulted  at  the    cold   repulse: — ''go   thy 

1  Rom.  X  ,  10. 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  99 

way  for  this  time  ;  when  I  have  a  conveiiieiit 
secison  Twill  call  for  thee!'^ 
The  Holy  Spirit  is  grieved, 

2.  By  unholy  conversation.  The  cha- 
racter of  our  minds  give  in  general  a 
direction  to  the  train  of  our  conversation. 
Hence  we  may  form  a  very  good  judg- 
ment of  the  cast  of  our  mind  if  we  strictly 
observe  the  character  of  the  conversation 
in  which  we  take  the  greatest  delight. 
"  Out  of  the  ahundance  of  the  heart,''  says 
our  Lord,  "  the  mouth  speahethr^  Of  the 
wicked  it  is  said  that,  ''  God  is  not  in  all 
his  thoughts!'^  Now  so  long  as  the  incon- 
siderate man  continues  so,  and  will  not 
wdth  divine  assistance  use  the  power  that 
he  has  to  bring  his  mind  back  from  its 
wanderings  and  lead  it  in  the  path  of 
serious,  sober  thinking,  we  cannot  expect 
him  to  delight  in  such  a  conversation  of 
which  the  Holy  Spirit  would  approve. 
His  thoughts  run   in   a  channel,  that  is 

1  Acts  xxiv.,  25.     2  Matt,  xii.,  34.      ^  pg^.  x.,  4. 


100  THE    SIN    OF   GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

"earthly,  sensual  and  devilish."  The 
conversation  in  which  he  delights,  must 
consequently  partake  of  the  same  cha- 
racter. How  then  can  the  Holy  Spirit 
be  otherwise  than  grieved  to  behold  the 
tongues  of  men  so  much  employed  about 
temporal  subjects,  as  totally  to  exclude 
those  that  are  spiritual  and  eternal; — 
those  subjects  which  excite  the  most 
adoring  wonder  and  rapturous  songs  of 
joy  among  the  redeemed  in  glory.  But 
upon  this  point,  we  need  not  confine  our 
remarks  exclusively  to  the  impenitent 
j)art  of  our  hearers.  Professing  Christians 
are  far  from  being  faultless  here.  Indeed, 
the  apostle  Paul  in  giving  the  admonition 
contained  in  the  text,  evidently  had  his 
Christian  brethren  at  Ephesus  chiefly  in 
view.  In  the  words  that  immediately 
^precede  the  text,  he  addressed  them 
thus:  —  '^ Let  no  corrupt  communication 
proceed  out  of  your  mouth,  hut  that  which 
is  good,  to  the  use  of  edifyinij,  that  it  mciy 
minister  grace  to  the  hearers T     The  text 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  101 

then  follows. — '^  And  .grieve  not  the  Holy 
Spirit  of  Gocir 

The  rule  laid  down  in  this  connexion 
w^hereby  Christians  may  avoid  grieving 
the  Spirit,  is  to  attend  to  the  preceding 
caution.  But  alas !  how  seldom  is  this 
rule  attended  to  by  professing  Christians 
in  their  intercourse  with  each  other. 
They  may  not  violate  the  first  part  of 
the  rule.  Their  conversation  may  not 
be  of  that  character  as  to  deserve  to  be 
styled^  '^  corrupt  communication !'  But  do 
they  not  often  violate  the  second  part  ? 
When  they  meet  together,  is  the  commu- 
nication that  proceeds  out  of  their  mouth 
good  to  the  use  of  edifying'?  Is  there  no 
foolish  talking  and  jesting  which  are  not 
convenient  ?  Is  there  no  unkind  and 
unnecessary  exposures  made  of  the  real 
or  supposed  faults  of  neighbors  ?  Is  there 
no  backbiting,  no  evil-speaking  and  slan- 
dering ?  Happy  for  the  cause  of  religion 
were  it  so.  But  the  reverse  is  too  often 
the   case.      Instead   of  adhering   to   the 


102  THE    JrlN    OF   GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

direction  of  the  Apostle,  aiming  to  edify 
those  present,  there  is  too  often  a  dispo- 
sition shown  to  inflict  an  injury  upon  the 
absent.  And  seeing  this  is  the  case,  it  is 
no  wonder  that  we  behold  so  many  dwarfs 
in  Christianity.  It  is  no  w^onder  that 
some  run  well  for  a  season  the  Christian 
race,  grow  weary,  turn  back  and  bring  a 
reproach  upon  the  cause.  You  need 
wonder  no  longer,  inconsistent  professor, 
why  you  have  no  comfortable  sense  of 
God's  love,  no  delight  in  the  sanctuary, 
no  relish  for  meditating  on  God's  law, 
and  attending  on  the  ordinances  of  his 
house.  You  have  grieved  the  Spirit  of 
grace,  and  caused  him  to  withdraw  from 
you  his  comforting  influences.  When  you 
have  learned  to  "  speak  good  of  the  name 
of  the  Lord,  to  be  talking  of  his  worship, 
glory,  praise  and  wondrous  works ;  to  be 
telling  of  his  loving  kindness  early  in  the 
morning,  and  of  his  truth  in  the  night 
season ;"  then,  may  you  expect  him  to 
lift  upon  you  the  light  of  his  countenance. 


SER.    v.]  IHE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  103 

and  to  bless  you  with  light,  life  and  vigor. 
On  the  contrary,  if  other  matters  of  a 
vain,  foolish  and  reprehensible  character, 
are  permitted  to  be  themes  to  exj)atiate 
upon  in  your  social  intercourse;  depend 
upon  it  a  leanness  will  come  over  your 
souls ;  you  will  become  like  Samson  shorn 
of  his  strength,  weak  as  other  men :  your 
enemies  will  put  out  your  eyes,  leaving 
you  to  grope  your  way  in  the  darkness  of 
spiritual  death.  Again,  the  Spirit  of  God 
is  grieved — 

3.  By  sinful  tempers  and  affections. 
In  the  verse  that  immediately  follows  the 
text,  St.  Paul  thus  exhorts  his  brethren : 
''Let  all  hitterness  and  ivrath,  and  anger 
and  clamor,  and  evil-speahing,  he  put  away 
from  you  icWi  all  malice^  It  is  much  to 
be  lamented  that  these  evil  affections 
prevail  too  much  among  professing  Chris- 
tians in  the  present  day.  From  the 
slightest  provocation  received  from  hu- 
man  frailty,    some    will    rave    and    toss 


104  THE    SIN    OF    GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

themselves  like  an  ox  unaccustomed  to 
the  yoke.  They  consider  it  too  much 
to  be  borne :  and  very  often  they  dwell 
upon  these  little  matters  until  the  poison 
of  the  adder  is  found  under  their  lips. 
Then  the  very  name  of  their  supposed 
adversary  cannot  be  mentioned  without 
eliciting  the  serpent  hiss.  And  by  in- 
dulging this  revengeful  spirit  Lr  a  time, 
it  finally  settles  down  in  malice,  a  rooted 
enmity,  which  makes  a  man  more  like 
Lucifer  than  any  other  sin  this  side  of 
perdition.  And  can  the  Holy  Spirit  dwell 
in  a  bosom  that  is  indulging  affections 
like  these?  'No,  never.  He  can  look  with 
delight  only  upon  his  own  ^ fruit,'  which 
''is  love,  joy,  peace,  lorKj-svffering,  gentle- 
ness, goodness,  faith,  meekness,  temperances^ 
Sinful  tempers  and  affections  are  the 
works  of  the  devil.  These  works,  the 
Spirit  of  God  in  all  his  merciful  and 
gracious  visits  to  man,  aims  to  destroy. 
Resolve  then,  my  Christian  friends,  in 
'  Gal.  v.,  22. 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  105 

the  strength  of  divine  grace,  to  resist  and 
overcome  these  enemies  to  your  peace. 
Christianity  designs  us  to  be  of  an  excel- 
lent spirit  ;  to  be  transformed  by  the 
renewing  of  our  minds  :  to  be  " ijeaceahle, 
gentle,  easy  to  he  entreated,  full  of  mercy 
and  good  fruits r'^  By  exhibiting  an  oppo- 
site spirit  we  dishonor  the  cause  of  Christ, 
and  consequently  grieve  the  Spirit  whose 
grand  object  is  to  advance  it  throughout 
the  earth.  We  have  mentioned  several 
instances  in  which  we  may  grieve  the 
Spirit;  but  we  may  add  in  a  general  way 
that  he  is  grieved  by  every  species  of  sin, 
whether  it  consists  in  doing  the  things 
we  ought  not  to  do,  or  in  leaving  undone 
those  things  which  we  ought  to  do.  We 
are  all  therefore  guilty  in  this  matter, 
and  have  need  daily  to  pray :  "  0  God, 
make  clean  our  hearts  within  us;  And 
take  not  thy  Holy  Spirit  from  us." 

We  shall  endeavor  now  by  a  few  con- 
siderations. 

^  James  iii.,  17. 
10 


106  THE    SIN   OF   GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

•  Second,    To  urge   the  admonition  con- 
tained in  tlie  text. 

1.  Consider  the    great   dignity  of  the 
Personage  slighted.  In  the  violation  of  the 
rules  of  civility  among  men,  the  degree 
of  criminality  is  determined  by  the  cha- 
racter of  the  persons.     Hence  the  same 
act   that   would   be    termed    simply    an 
insult  from  one  man  towards  his  equal  in 
station,  w^ould  be  called  a  great  indignity 
towards    his  superior,  say  his  Governor. 
This  arises  from  the  inequality  of  position 
that  subsists  between  the  parties.     Now  if 
the  degree  of  guilt  contracted  by  grieving 
the   Spirit,  is  determined  by  his  superior 
dignity,  where  shall  we  find  a  term  that 
can   give   us   an    adequate   idea   of    the 
crime  ?     The  Spirit  of  God  fills  immen- 
sity.    And  where  is  the  mind  that  can, 
in   its  grandest  and  loftiest  conceptions, 
fully  comprehend  this  great  truth  ?    Such 
knowledge  is  too  high,  too  w^onderful,  it 
cannot  be  attained.     This  the  enraptured 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  107 

psalmist  confessed,  when,  in  the  sublimest 
language  he  exclaimed  : — "  Whither  shall 
I  go  from  thy  Sinrit  ?  or  icltither  shall  I 
flee  from  thy  presence  ?  If  I  ascend  up 
into  heaven,  thou  art  there;  if  I  make  my 
hed  in  hell,  behold  thou  art  there.  If  I 
talze  the  lolngs  of  the  morning,  and  dwell  in 
the  uttermost  parts  of  the  sea,  even  there 
shall  thy  hand  lead  me,  and  thy  right  hand 
shall  hold  me!''^  This  uncreated,  eternal, 
omnipotent,  and  omnipresent  Being,  man, 
dying  man,  whose  breath  is  in  his  nos- 
trils, can  dare  to  insult !  What  horrid 
impiety !     Consider, 

2.  His  patience  with  you,  notwith- 
standing your  repeated  provocations. 
When  an  earthly  friend  considers  himself 
to  be  insulted,  he  generally  stands  off  in 
cold  indiiFerence  towards  you,  until  some 
due  acknowledgment  be  made ;  and 
even  then  his  friendship  is  very  apt  to  be 
mixed  with  a  little  bitterness.  But  the 
^  Psa.  cxxxix.,  7,  8,  9. 


108  THE   SIN    OF   GRIEVING  [SER.    V. 

Spirit  of  God,  though  repeatedly  grieved, 
as  often  returns.  He  comes  unasked, 
and  stands  at  the  door,  and  knocks  long 
and  loud,  entreating  us  to  open  the  door, 
that  he  may  come  in  and  sup  with  us, 
and  we  with  him.  Oh  !  how  aggravated 
the  guilt  that  must  be  contracted  by  a 
continued  opposition  to  such  stupendous 
love  as  this.  But  remember  that  God  has 
said : — "  My  Spirit  shall  not  ahcays  strive 
with  manr'^  There  is  an  "  accepted  time, 
a  day  of  salvation,''^  in  which  we  may 
seek  and  find  mercy  at  the  hand  of  God 
through  Christ.  That  time,  how^ever,  and 
that  day  may  pass,  when  the  things  that 
belong  to  our  peace  may  be  forever  hid 
from  our  eyes.  By  a  long  and  continued 
series  of  opposition  to  the  Spirit's  in- 
fluences, the  mind  may  at  last  become  so 
hardened  in  unbelief,  so  unsusceptible  of 
any  permanent  religious  impression,  by 
the  ordinary  means  of  grace,  (and  we 
have  no  right  to  expect  any  other  means) 
*  Gen.  vi.,  3.  ^2  Cor.  vi.,  2. 


SER.    v.]  THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.  109 

as  to  cause  the  Holy  Dove  to  take  its 
everlasting  flight.  Forty  years  was  he 
grieved  at  the  disobedience  of  ancient  Is- 
rael, and  said — "  They  do  ahcay  err  in 
their  hearts,  and  they  have  not  known  my 
ways.  So  I  sivare  in  my  icrcdh,  they  shall 
not  enter  into  my  restr^  Take  warning, 
then,  \ny  brethren,  from  this  example, 
lest  you  fall  under  the  same  awful  con- 
demnation. That  you  have  repeatedly 
opposed  the  friendly  counsels,  warnings 
and  entreaties  of  the  Spirit,  you  cannot 
deny.  He  has  often  called  you  to  par- 
take of  the  waters  of  life,  and  you  have 
as  often  refused  to  hear ;  he  has  stretched 
out  his  hand  to'  deliver  you  from  the 
snares  of  the  devil,  but  you  have  disre- 
garded his  kind  intervention.  Still  he 
waits  to  be  gracious  unto  you,  notwitli- 
standing  your  past  ingratitude  and  innu- 
merable provocations.  Though  your  sins 
be  as  scarlet.  He  is  ready  and  willing  to 
make  them  as  white  as  snow.     Let  his 

'  Hebrews,  iii.,  10,  11. 
10* 


110  GRIEVING   THE    HOLY    SPIRIT.         [SER.  V. 

long-sufTering,  goodness,  and  love,  lead 
you  to  that  repentance  that  needeth  not 
be  repented  of  again.  Prostrate  as  you 
should  be  at  the  footstool  of  mercy,  while 
you  are  acknowledging  your  repeated 
insults  to  the  heavenly  visitor,  let  your 
sincere,  fervent  and  persevering  prayer 
ascend  to  the  Lord,  whose  ear  is  ever 
attentive ;  and  let  its  burden  be — 

^^  Stay,  thou  insulted  Spirit,  stay, 

Though  I  have  done  thee  such  despite  ; 
Nor  cast  the  sinner  quite  away. 

Nor  take  thine  everhisting  flight. 
Though  I  have  most  unfaithful  been, 

And  long  in  vain  thy  grace  received  j 
Ten  thousand  times  thy  goodness  seen, 

Ten  thousand  times  thy  goodness  grieved ; 
Yet,  oh  !  the  mourning  sinner  spare, 

In  honor  of  my  great  Iligh-Priest. 
Nor  in  thy  righteous  anger  swear, 

T'exclude  me  from  thy  people's  rest. 
My  soul  lies  humbled  in  the  dust. 
And  owns  thy  dreadful  sentence  just; 
Look  down,  0  Lord,  with  pitying  eye 
And  save  the  soul  coudemn'd  to  die." 


SERMON    YI. 

THE  FOEBEAEANCE  AND  EETEIBUTIYE  JUSTICE 
OF  GOD. 

"  The  lord  is  slow  to  anger,  and  great  in  power, 

AND  AVILL  NOT  AT  ALL  ACQUIT  THE  WICKED."       Nahum.  i.  3. 

In  our  attempts  to  worship  the  God  of 
heaven,  it  is  highly  important  that  we 
entertain,  as  far  as  possible,  just  concep- 
tions of  the  divine  character;  lest,  while 
we  profess  to  worship  Him  with  our  lips, 
we  at  the  same  time,  be  open  to  the 
rebuke  :  "  Ye  worship^  ye  Imoio  not  loJiat." 
We  are  summoned  to  the  house  of  prayer 
at  this  time,  under  circumstances  of 
unusual  interest.  It  has  been  recom- 
mended by  the  Chief  Magistrate,  that 
this  day  be  devoted  by  the  people 
throughout  the  country  to  prayer  and 
fasting.     And  perhaps,  there  is  no  view 


112  THE  FORBEARANCE  AND    [SER.  YI. 

of  the  character  of  God  more  proper  for 
the  mhid  to  be  duly  impressed  with  on 
an  occasion  like  the  present,  than  the 
one  contained  in  the  text — his  forbearing 
mercy,  in  connexion  with  his  power  and 
justice. 

That  Jehovah,  whose  perfections  are  un- 
limited, should  at  any  time,  in  the  smallest 
degree  imaginable,  be  agitated,  or  dis- 
turbed by  any  inward  emotion  hke  mortal 
man,  is  impossible.  Passion  is  an  attri- 
bute that  belongs  exclusively  to  imperfect 
beings,  who  require  some  moving  principle 
to  excite  them  to  action.  But  no  such 
necessity  can  be  supposed  to  exist  in  the 
great  I  AM,  without  involving  the  most 
blasphemous  absurdity.  Hence,  those 
portions  of  scripture  that  ascribe  anger, 
wrath,  jealousy,  or  any  other  passion,  to 
the  Deity,  are  always  to  be  understood 
in  a  figurative,  not  in  a  literal  sense.  In 
every  case,  it  refers  to  his  mode  of  pro- 
ceeding, or  acting,  and  not  to  any  inward 
emotion.      As   men,   when   provoked    to 


SER.    VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE    OF    GOD  113 

anger,  generally  take  steps  to  avenge 
themselves  upon  their  enemies,  so,  when 
God  executes  the  sentence  of  His  right- 
eous laws  upon  the  rebels  against  His 
government,  He  is  said  to  be  avenged, 
not  that  He,  like  man,  takes  a  malignant 
pleasure  in  the  destruction  of  His  enemies, 
but  He  is  said  to  be  avenged,  because  in 
such  a  case.  His  mode  of  procedure 
resembles  the  steps  that  men  take  when 
they  are  under  the  influence  of  anger. 
With  these  preliminary  remarks,  we 
shall  enter  upon  the  consideration  of  the 
several  propositions  contained  in  the  text 
in  the  order  in  which  they  are  presented. 

First : — ''  The  Lord  is  slow  to  anger T 
That  is.  He  is  slow  to  execute  punish- 
ment upon  the  transgressors  of  His  law. 
We  have  a  striking  illustration  of  the 
truth  of  this  proposition. 

1.  In  the  case  of  our  fore-parents. 
That    eventful    period,  when   they  per- 


11 4:     .  THE   FORBEARANCE   AND  [SER.    VI. 

petratod  the  crime  that  brought  death 
into  the  world  and  all  our  woe,  in  that 
very  hour.  Jehovah  could  in  justice  have 
banished  them  from  the  happy  bowers  of 
Paradise,  and  consigned  them  to  the 
region  of  eternal  misery  and  despair.  It 
was  thus  He  dealt  with  Lucifer  and  his 
rebellious  crew.  ''And  the  angels  ichich 
kept  not  their  first  estate,  hut  left  their  own 
hahitation,  he  hath  reserved  in  everlasting 
chains,  tender  darkness,  unto  the  judgment 
of  the  great  dayT^  But  instead  of  dealing 
thus  with  our  fallen  progenitors,  he 
granted  them  a  day  of  grace — he  gave 
them  a  firm  ground  of  hope  in  that 
cheering  and  comprehensive  promise  : 
"  /  will  put  enmity  between  thee  and  the 
woman,  and  between  thy  seed  and  her  seed  ; 
it  shall  bruise  thy  head,  and  thou  shall 
bruise  his  heeir^  That  they  had  sufficient 
time  granted  to  avail  themselves,  as  we 
believe  they  did,  of  that  gracious  pro- 
mise, is  clear,  from  Adam's  protracted 
'  Judc  G.  =^  Gcu.  iii.,  15. 


S?:R.    VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE    OF    GOD.  115 

term  of  life,  which  was  extended  beyond 
the  limit  of  nine  hundred  years.  The 
same  penitence,  faith  and  obedience,  that 
marked  the  character  of  Abel,  when  he 
offered  "a  more  excellent  sacrifice  than 
Cain,"  were  without  doubt,  equally  prom- 
inent in  our  fore-parents,  w^hen  "  God 
made  coats  of  skins  and  clothed  them." 
It  is  not  without  good  reason  supposed, 
that  this  clothing  was  the  skins  of  beasts 
shain  in  sacrifice  by  divine  appoint- 
ment, as  typical  of  the  one  great  sacrifice 
of  Christ,  who,  in  the  fulness  of  time, 
"  gave  himself  a  ransom  for  all." 

2.  Another  illustration  of  the  truth  that 
God  is  SLOW  TO  ANGER,  we  have  in  the 
case  of  the  Antediluvians.  They  had 
not  only  multiplied  greatly  in  point  of 
numbers,  but  their  sins  and  iniquities 
also  had  increased  to  an  alarming  extent. 
''  The  loickedness  of  7nan  was  great  in  the 
earthy  every  imagination  of  the  thoughts  of 


116         THE  FORBEARANCE  AND    [SER.  Vr. 

his  licart  was  only  evil  continually.''^ 
Being  thus  corrupt  at  the  very  fountain, 
it  followed  as  a  natural  consequence,  that 
''the  earth  teas  filled  icltli  violence  throwjh 
themr^  But  what  was  the  conduct  of 
God  towards  that  guilty  people  ?  He 
mercifully  w^arned  them  of  the  awful 
consequence  of  their  overgrown  wicked- 
ness by  his  servant  Noah,  who  was  "  a 
preacher  of  righteousness"  to  that  devoted 
people.  He  strove  with  them  by  his 
Holy  Spirit.  He  bore  with  their  bad 
manners ;  he  waited  for  their  reforma- 
tion for  the  space  of  one  hundred  and 
twenty  years,  before  he  performed  "  his 
act,  his  strange  act!' 

o.  The  same  slowness  to  anger  marked 
the  conduct  of  God  towards  his  chosen 
people  Israel.  They  were  under  his 
special  guidance,  government  and  protec- 
tion :  they  were  favored  above  all  other 
nations  with   the  means  of  religious  in- 

*  Gen.  vi.,  5.  "  Gen.  vi.,  13. 


SER.    VI.]   RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE    OP    GOD.  117 

struction,  temporal  security  and  prospe- 
rity. They  were  "  nourished  and  brought 
up  as  children."  When  they  groaned 
under  the  Egyptian  yoke,  God  delivered 
them  with  a  high  hand  and  with  an  out- 
stretched arm.  When  they  travelled 
through  the  dry  and  barren  desert  where 
no  water  was,  he  caused  streams  to  flow 
from  the  flinty  rock  to  refresh  their  faint- 
ing spirits.  He  rained  down  manna  from 
heaven  to  relieve  them  from  the  pains  of 
hunger.  But  notwithstanding  they  en- 
joyed such  distinguished  privileges  and 
blessings  at  the  hand  of  God,  they  were 
far  from  bringing  forth  those  fruits  of 
purity  and  good  living  which  might  have 
been  reasonably  expected.  There  were, 
it  is  true,  some  honorable  exceptions ; 
but  the  general  character  given  them  in 
the  holy  scriptures,  is  that  of  "  a  rebel- 
lious and  stiff-necked  people," — they  were 
bent  on  backsliding — ever  ready  to  depart 
from  their  Almighty  Sovereign  and  Friend, 
and  to  conform  to  the  abominable  prac- 
11 


118  THE   FORBEARANCE    AND  [SER.    VI. 

tices  and  customs  of  the  surroundinfij 
heathen.  But'did  lie  speedily  give  them 
up  to  work  out  their  own  destruction  with 
greediness  ?  No.  He  bore  with  them  for 
upwards  of  fifteen  hundred  years  after 
he  had  delivered  them  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt  and  out  of  the  house  of  bondage. 
Moreover,  when  they  had  well  nigh  filled 
up  the  cup  of  their  iniquity  in  rejecting 
the  only  Savior  of  sinful  man,  still,  the 
Lord  forbore,  to  visit  them  according  to 
the  demerit  of  their  crimes.  The  axe  it 
is  true,  was  lying  at  the  root  of  the  tree ; 
but  he  did  not  speedily  issue  forth  the 
order, — cut  it  doion — its  day  of  salvation 
was  protracted  a  little  longer.  Accord- 
ingly, the  blessed  Savior,  after  his  resur- 
rection from  the  dead,  in  commissioning 
his  Apostles  to  spread  the  glad  tidings  of 
mercy  universally,  instructed  them,  espe- 
cially, to  begin  at  Jerusalem — to  give  the 
first  oifer  of  salvation  to  them  who  had 
crucified  the  Lord  of  life  and  glory. 
Thus  the  history  of  that  peculiar  people 


SER     VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE    OF  GOD.  119 

clearly  illustrates  the  truth  that  the  Lord 
is  sloiv  to  anger. 

Again.     The  character  of  the  Gentiles, 
contrasted   with    God's   conduct  towards 
them,  is    a  further    confirmation    of  the 
first  proposition   of  the  text.       A   very 
startling,    but  graphic    picture    of  .  their 
wretchedly  depraved  character  is  drawn 
by   the    Apostle     Paul    in    the    opening 
of  his  masterly  epistle   to  the    Romans. 
"  Being  filled^''  says  he,  "  with  all  imright- 
eoicsness,  fornication,  ivickedness,    covetous- 
ness,  maliciousness  ;  full  of  envy,  murder, 
debate,  deceit,  malignity ;  whisperers,  hach- 
hiters,    haters    of    God,    despiteful,  proud, 
hoasters,  inventors  of  evil  things,  disobedient 
to  parents,  ivithout  understanding  ;  covenant 
breakers,  ivithout   natural  affection,  ijnpla- 
cable,  unmerciful :    loho  Iznotoing  the  judg- 
ment of  God,  that  they  which  commit  such 
things  are  loorthy  of  death,  not  only  do  the 
same,  but   have  pleasure  in  them    that  do 
thenir^     Here  then,  we  have  the   moral 

1  Kom.  i.,  29,  32. 


120  THE  FORBEARANCE  AND    [SER.  VI. 

portraiture  of  the  Gentiles,  as  it  presented 
itself  to  themincl  of  the  inspired  Apostle. 
Yet  we  find  that  they  were  not  swept  off 
the  face  of  the  earth  as  with  a  besom  of 
destruction.  The  same  Apostle  says, — 
''And  the  times  of  this  ignorance  God 
ivinlced  at^''^  i.  e.  He  bore  with  them  in 
mercy,  in  order  to  gi^  them  a  clear  and 
explicit  call  to  repentance.  But  we  need 
not  confine  your  attention  to  facts  of 
ancient  date,  since  we  have  a  sufficient 
illustration  of  the  truth  under  considera- 
tion, in  our  own  day  and  time.  See,  how 
the  Lord's  day  is  profaned;  the  day  conse- 
crated to  holiness  and  God  is  devoted  by 
multitudes,  young  and  old,  to  idleness, 
frivolity  and  sinful  pleasures.  How  many 
acts  of  inhumanity,  cruelty,  oppression, 
high-handed  robbery,  murder,  treachery, 
and  lewdness,  are  every  day  practised 
amidst  the  blaze  of  moral  and  religious 
light.  These  things  are  of  so  frequent 
occurrence,  that  they  almost  cease  to 
^  Acts  xvii.,  30. 


SER.    VI.]   RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE   OF   GOD.  121 

affect  us.  See  the  multiplied  groggeries, 
gambling  cellars  and  dens  of  infamy 
which  are  thronged,  not  only  by  the  old 
and  hardened  in  crime,  but  thronged  by 
the  young  men  of  our  city,  whose  down- 
ward course  is  blasting  the  best  hopes  of 
their  parents  and  friends.  Oh!  were  it 
possible  for  us  to  X^ke  a  panoramic  view 
of  all  the  abominations  committed  here 
during  the  space  of  twenty-four  hours 
only,  we  should  be  overwhelmed  at  the 
sight :  we  should  be  ready  to  regard  our- 
selves as  dwelling  among  incarnate  demons 
instead  of  human,  intelligent,  and  moral 
beings.  Horror-stricken  at  the  sight,  we 
would  tremble  under  the  most  agonizing 
apprehensions,  lest  the  earth  would  not. 
long  sustain  such  a  mass  of  guilt,  pollution 
and  crime.  Now,  w^e  should  bear  in 
mind,  that  the  Supreme  Kuler  of  the 
Universe,  surveys  with  one  comprehen- 
sive glance,  not  only  all  the  crimes  of  a 
single  nation,  but  of  the  world  at  large. 
He  has  a  clear  and  distinct  view  of  every 
11* 


122         THE  FORBEARANCE  AND    [SER.  VI. 

species  of  wickedness  that  is  now,  or  ever 
has  been  committed.  Yet  we  behold  his 
sun  rising  upon  the  just,  and  upon  the 
unjust,  we  have  the  regular  return  of  the 
seasons  :  "He  gives  its  rain  from  heaven  and 
fruitful  seasons,  filling  our  hearts  ivith  food 
and  gladness:'  Why  is  this  ?  Since  the 
wickedness  of  man  is  still  great  in  the 
earth,  why  do  we  not  see  the  vials  of 
unmitigated  wrath,  poured  out  upon  its 
guilty  inhabitants?  Why  do  we  not 
see  the  heavens  gathering  blackness  and 
the  red  thunderbolt  hurled  down  in 
flaming  vengeance  ?  To  these  inquiries 
unassisted  reason  can  give  no  satisfactory 
answers.  To  see  virtue,  humanity,  truth 
and  justice  lying  prostrate  upon  the  earth, 
while  vice,  cruelty  and  gross  injustice 
receive  honor  and  support,  would  be  to  us 
an  incomprehensible  mystery,  were  it  not 
for  the  revelation  of  the  truth  contained 
in  the  text,  that,  the  Lord  is  slow  to  anger. 
This  truth  will  receive  further  confirma- 
tion from  its  application  to  our  own  indi- 


SER.    VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE    JUSTICE    OF    GOD.  123 

vidual  cases.  There  is  not  one  among 
us  arriven  to  years  of  maturity,  who  upon 
a  review  of  his  life  can  fail  to  see  the 
clearest  evidences  in  his  own  case  of  the 
truth  contained  in  the  first  part  of  our 
text.  Let  conscience  speak,  and  she  will 
whisper  in  the  ears  of  some  thus.  You 
are  now  well-stricken  in  years ;  you  were 
born  in  a  Christian  land  ;  you  have  heard 
the  sound  of  salvation  ten  thousand  times, 
but  alas !  you  cannot  find  in  all  your 
life  one  single  day  truly  devoted  to  the 
service  of  that  God  in  whom  you  live, 
move,  and  have  your  being,  and  who  has 
made  every  provision  for  your  present 
and  everlasting  happiness.  To  another 
she  would  say,  in  the  spring-tide  of  life 
you  sought  the  Lord  and  found  him  to  the 
joy  and  satisfaction  of  your  soul;  but 
suffering  yourself  to  be  drawn  aside  by 
your  giddy  companions,  and  through  the 
deceitfulness  of  your  own  heart,  you  be- 
came entangled  again  in  the  yoke  of 
bondage ;  you  crucified  afresh  the  Lord  of 


124  THE  rOllBEARANCE   AND  [SER.    VI. 

glory ;  put  liim  to  open  shame ;  and  now, 
you  are  ten-fold  more  the  child  of  Satan 
than  before.  To  us  all  she  would  bring 
home  the  cliargc,  of  having  too  often 
"  done  the  things  which  we  ought  not  to 
have  done,  and"  of  having  "left  undone 
those  thiu2:s  which  we  oujxht  to  have 
done."  But  notwithstanding  this,  our 
lots  are  still  among  the  living  and  not 
with  the  dead.  So  far  from  having  any 
visible  marks  of  divine  vengeance  upon 
us,  we  are  still  prisoners  of  hope,  within 
the  reach  of  mercy,  having  the  privilege 
of  partaking  of  the  blessings  of  pardon, 
peace  and  holiness  in  this  world,  as  pre- 
paratory for  the  enjoyment  of  eternal 
happiness  in  the  world  to  come.  Breth- 
ren, we  all  stand  this  day  living  witnesses 
that  the  Lord  is  sloio  to  anger. 

Second.  This  attribute  of  God  is  no 
evidence  of  his  want  of  ability  to  execute 
upon  transgressors  the  sentence  of  his  vio- 
lated law,  for  the  prophet  further  adds  that 

He  is  '  (J  real  in  poioer'     Men  maybe 


6ER.    VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE    OF    GOD.  125 

sometimes  slow  in  effecting  their  purposes, 
because  they  are  unable  to  accomplish 
their  ends  with  despatch.  No  such  ina- 
bility belongs  to  Jehovah.  What  can 
stay  his  hand,  who,  "  in  the  beginning 
created  the  heaven  and  the  earth — who 
spake  and  it  was  done ;  who  commanded, 
and  it  stood  fast."  Indeed,  his  slowness 
to  anger,  or  long-forbearance,  is  perhaps, 
the  greatest  proof  of  his  power  that  we 
can  have  any  conception  of.  In  contem- 
plating the  magnitude,  the  number  and 
velocity  of  the  planets,  we  are  justly 
struck   with    amazement    at    the    great 

s,  power  that  upholds  and  sustains  them. 
But  what  comparison  can  there  be  between 

-  the  power  that  is  put  forth  in  the  mate- 
rial system,  and  that  which  is  manifested 
in  his  long-forbearance  towards  sinners. 
The  former  is  power  over  matter,  the 
latter  is  power  over  his  own  uncreated 
Being.  The  exhibition  of  monstrosity  in 
wickedness,  arouses  at  once  the  indigna- 
tion of  men,  and  nothing  but  the  want  of 


126         THE  FORBEARANCE  AND    [SER.  Vf. 

authority  and  power  prevent  tliem  in  such 
cases,  from  visiting  it*  with  summary 
punishment.  But  this  is  an  evidence  of 
our  weakness.  God  "is  of  purer  eyes 
than  to  behold  iniquity — Heaven  is  im- 
i:)ure  in  his  sight."  Yet  he  is  cognizant 
of  the  great  mass  of  human  crime,  but 
strikes  not.  His  own  iniiexible  justice 
and  truth  call  for  vengeance  against  the 
transgressors;  but  his  long-forbearance, 
holds  back  the  bolt.  Here  lies  the  ^'tlmn- 
der  of  his  jyoicer^  which  is  beyond  human 
comprehension. 

Again,  nor  does  his  slowness  to  anger 
afford  any  security  to  the  finally  impeni- 
tent ;  for  it  is  further  added  that 

He  ^^will  not  at  all  acquit  the  wicked^ 
Though  he  bear  long  wuth  sinners,  yet 
retributive  justice  will  overtake  them  at 
last.  The  fate  of  several  nations  as  well 
as  individuals  may  be  adduced  as  illus- 
trative of  this.  The  ante-diluvians,  the 
Sodomites,  the  Egyptians,  tlie  Ninevites, 


SER.    VI.]    RETRIBUTIVE    JUSTICE    OF    GOD.  127 

the  Jews,  all  stand  upon  the  historian's 
page,  as  indisputable  evidences  of  the 
truth  that  He  will  not  at  all  acquit  the 
finally  impenitent.  Now,  as  nations  can 
exist  as  such  in  this  world  only,  and  as 
God  is  unchangeably  the  same,  when 
they  become  involved  in  national  guilt, 
nothing  but  a  timely  repentance  can 
avert  a  national  punishment.  Avarice, 
pride  and  ambition  might  be  expatiated 
upon  as  sins  of  which  this  nation  stands 
guilty  before  God;  but  the  great  master 
sin  of  the  nation  is,  that  of  sanctioning 
that  system  of  outrage,  which  allows  man 
to  hold  property  in  his  fellow-man,  the 
system,  that  blots  out  the  moral  image 
traced  upon  the  soul  by  the  hand  of  God, 
and  writes  thereupon — ' it  is  a  thing'  It 
requires  no  labored  attempt  to  show  that 
the  nation  is  verily  guilty  in  this  matter. 
In  whatever  department  we  look,  whe- 
ther legislative,  literary,  civil  or  religious, 
we  find  in  the  general  spirit  and  conduct 
of  each,  a  determined  opposition  to   the 


128  THE   FORBEARANCE   AND  [SER     VI. 

universal  rights  of  man.  And  what 
marks  do  we  observe  of  true  repentance  ? 
Is  there  a  general  concern  upon  the  sub- 
ject? Are  the  people  awakened  to  a 
sense  of  their  awful  guilt?  Are  they 
bringing  forth  fruit  meet  for  repentance  ? 
Are  they  like  Zaccheus  restoring  four-fold 
to  their  wronged  neighbors?  Far  from 
it,  far  from  it.  The  great  absorbing  theme 
dwelt  upon  from  one  end  of  the  country 
to  the  other  is  gain.  The  obHgation  "  to 
do  justly,  to  love  mercy,  and  to  ivcdk  Itumhly 
with  God,''  is  not  taken  into  the  account. 
Here  a  general  apathy  prevails.  It  is 
certainly  a  very  imposing  sight  to  behold 
an  entire  people,  as  at  tliis  day,  present- 
ing themselves  before  God  in  the  attitude 
of  humble  suppliants.  Prayer  and  fasting 
are  some  of  the  signs  of  penitence,  and 
when  accompanied  with  the  other  marks, 
viz.,  the  forsaking  of  evil,  and  the  prac- 
tising of  good  works,  they  are  well- 
pleasing  to  God;  otherwise  they  are  of 
no   avail.     When   the  Ninevites  under  a 


SER.    VI.]      RETRIBUTIVE   JUSTICE   OF   GOD.  129 

dread  of  God's  judgments  clothed  them- 
selves in  sack-cloth,  and  cried  mightily  to 
God,  it  is  said;  that,  "  God  saw  their 
works,  that  they  turned  frain  their  evil  way  ; 
and  God  repented  of  the  evil  that  he  had  said 
that  he  ivould  do  unto  them,  and  he  did  it 
notr^  But  what  does  the  Lord  say  to  his 
people  when  they  had  given  up  themselves 
to  unrighteousness,  and  still  offered  to 
Him  a  formal  worship.  "  To  ivhat  pur- 
pose  is  the  midtitude  of  your  sacrifices  unto 
me  ?  saith  the  Lord :  When  ye  come  to 
appear  before  me,  who  hath  required  this  at 
your  hand  to  tread  my  courts  ?  Briyig  no 
more  vain  oblations :  incense  is  an  cdtomina- 
tion  unto  me  ;  the  new  moons  and  sabbaths, 
the  calling  of  assemblies,  I  cannot  away 
with :  it  is  iniquity,  even  the  solemn  meeting. 
And  when  ye  spread  forth  your  hands  I  will 
hide  mine  eyes  from  you;  yea,  when  ye 
make  many  prayers  I  will  not  hear ;"  and 
the  reason  he  assigns  is  :  "  your  hands  are 
full  of  blood.''     Hence  the   exhortation; 

*  Jonah  iii,,  10. 
12 


130         THE  FORBEARANCE  AND     [SER.  VI. 

"  WasJi  you,  malce  you  dean  ;  jtut  aicay  the 
evil  of  your  doings  from  before  mine  eyes; 
cease  to  do  evil,  learn  to  do  loell,  seek  judg- 
ment; relieve  the  opjyressed ;  judge  the 
fatherless;  jflead  for  the  widoivT^  The 
point  upon  which  their  happiness  or 
misery  depended  is  thus  stated.  "  If  ye 
he  loilling  and  obedient,  ye  shall  eat  the  good 
of  the  land.  But  if  ye  refuse  and  rebel,  ye 
shall  he  devoured,  by  the  sivord :  for  the 
mouth  of  the  Lord  hath  spoken  it"^  This 
threatening  was  signally  executed  upon 
the  Jewish  nation  in  the  terrible  slaughter 
which  took  place  when  their  proud  city 
was  besieged  by  the  Roman  army  under 
Titus.  And  it  awfully  exemplified  the 
inspired  declaration :  "  Righteousness  ex- 
alteth  a  nation,  hut  sin  is  a  reproach  to  any 
people''^  With  regard  to  the  impenitent, 
as  individuals,  though  in  this  world  they 
find  by  experience  that  "  the  ivay  of  trans- 
gressors is  hard  .•"  yet  the  full  measure  of 

*Isa.  i.,11,  12,  18,  15,  IG,  17 

^Isa.  i.,  19,  20.  «Piov.  xiv.,  34- 


SER.    VI.]        RETRIBUTIVE  JUSTICE    OF   GOD.  131 

their  punishment  will  not  be  meted  out  to 
them  until  the  final  judgment.  Then  God 
'^loill  render  to  every  man  according  to  his 
deeds."^  "  Unto  them  that  are  contentious  and 
do  not  obey  the  truth,  hut  obey  unrighteous- 
ness;  indignation  and  wrath^  tribulation 
and  anguish  upon  every  soid  of  man  that 
doeth  eviir^  Be  awakened  then,  my 
impenitent  bearers,  to  a  sense  of  your 
danger.  Let  God's  patience  with  you 
lead  to  a  timely  repentance.  This  is  the 
gracious  design  Heaven  has  in  view,  in 
bearing  with  your  bad  manners  from  day 
to  day  and  from  year  to  year.  He  is 
slow  to  anger  under  all  your  provocations, 
in  order  that  you  may  be  suitably  affected, 
and  so  be  led  to  repentance  and  salvation. 
Abuse  not  his  mercy  by  hardening  your 
hearts  and  stiffening  your  necks.  Think 
not  that  because  sentence  against  an  evil 
work  is  not  executed  speedily,  you  will 
therefore  escape  punishment.     The    arm 

Rom.  ii.,  6.  Rom.  ii.,  8. 


132  THE    FORBEARANCE,    &C.  [SER.    VI. 

of  Divine  Justice  may  be  long  delayed, 
yet  it  will  fall  at  last  upon  your  guilty 
head  with  accumulated  vengeance.  And 
who  can  endure  the  idea  of  ftilling  into 
the  prunitive  hands  of  Him  who  is  omni- 
potent in  power !  May  you  avert  this, 
by  a  timely  repentance,  by  an  unreserved 
dedication  of  yourselves  to  His  service. 
Then,  his  power,  justice  and  mercy  will 
combine  to  ensure  your  present  and  ever- 
lasting happiness. 


SERMON    VII. 

PRICE    IN    HAND    OF     THE     FOOLISH     TO    GET 
WISDOM. 

**  Wherefore  is  there  a  price  in  the  hand  op  a  fool  to 
get  wisdom,  seeing  he  hath  no  heart  to  it  ?" 

Prov.  xvii.   16. 

Wisdom  is  a  gem  of  inestimable  value. 
Nothing  SO  strongly  marks  the  superiority 
of  one  class  of  men  above  another,  than 
their  pre-eminence  in  wisdom.  For  the 
various  arts  of  civilized  life,  the  innu- 
merable comforts  and  conveniences  we 
enjoy,  to  which  the  native  children  of 
the  forest  are  entire  strangers;  we  are 
indebted  to  the  operations  of  superior 
wisdom.  It  guides  the  mariner  across 
the  pathless  waste  of  waters,  and  leads 
him  back  over  mountain  billows  safe  to 

12* 


134  PRICE   IN    HAND    OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

liis  own  kindred  and  home  laden  with 
the  riches  of  foreign  climes.  It  scours 
the  surface  of  our  globe,  investigates  the 
numerous  vegetables  of  the  verdant  king- 
dom ;  marks  their  genera,  their  species, 
their  different  properties,  their  agencies, 
especially  in  arresting  the  ravages  of  dis- 
ease to  which  man  is  liable  in  this  state 
of  discipline  and  trial.  It  penetrates  the 
bowels  of  the  earth  and  explores  the  won- 
ders and  riches  of  the  mineral  kingdom. 
It  mounts  up  to  heaven;  up^  at  a  dizzy 
height,  and  there  observes  the  circuitous 
pathway  of  the  planets,  and  with  its  vast 
line  measures  them  as  they  roll  along  in 
the  wide  expanse.  The  order  and  regu- 
larity that  obtain  among  men  How  from 
this  source.  We  sometimes  see  different 
nations  involved  in  angry  disputes,  and 
led  to  the  very  point  of  bringing  about  all 
the  horrors  of  a  desolating  war.  Fortu- 
nately, however,  superior  wisdom  in  due 
season  rises  up  in  her  majesty  and  makes 
her  voice  heard  above  the  "sound  of  many 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH   TO   GET   WISDOM.  135 

waters:^ — the  tumultuous  murmurs  of  the 
people  are  at  once  hushed :  and  the  hos- 
tile spirit  with  its  menacing  array  of  the 
weapons  of  death,  gives  place  to  the 
pleasing  spectacle  of  harmony,  fraternity, 
peace,  and  their  ever-attendant  blessings. 
In  this  limited  view  of  wisdom's  opera- 
tions, all  are  ready  to  acknowledge  its 
paramount  value  and  excellency.  But 
the  Holy  Scriptures  speak  of,  and  the 
text  alludes  to,  a  wisdom  of  a  much 
higher  order  still. 

Job,  in  a  figurative  style  common  among 
the  orientals,  inquires  where  man's  highest 
wisdom  is  to  be  found :  and  having  searched 
in  vain  through  every  department  of  na- 
ture, he  at  length  arrived  at  the  true  and 
only  fountain.  ^^  But  loliere  shall  wisdom 
he  found  ?  and  wliere  is  the  'place  of  under- 
standing  ?  Man  hnoioeth  not  the  price  thereof; 
neither  is  it  found  in  the  land  of  the  living. 
The  depth  saith,  It  is  7iot  in  me :  and  the  sea 
saithy  It  is  not  in  me.     It  cannot  he  gotten 


136  PRICE   IN    HAND   OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

for  gold,  neither  shall  silver  he  weighed  for 
the  price  thereof.     It  cannot  he  valued  icith 
the  gold  of  Ophir,  with  the  pfrecioics  onyx, 
or  the  sapphire.      The  gold  and  the  crystal 
cannot  equal  it:  and  the  exchange  of  it  shall 
not  he  for  jeicels  of  fine  gold.     No  mentioii 
shcdl  he  made  of  coral,  or  of  pearls :  for  the 
p)rice  of  loisdom  is  above  rvibies.      The  topaz 
of  Ethiopia  shcdl  not  equal  it,  neither  shcdl 
it  he  valued  ivith  pure  gold.      Whence  then 
cometh  ivisdom  ?  and  lohere  is  the  place  of 
understanding  ?     Seeing  it  is  hid  from  the 
eyes  of  cdl  living,  a.nd  kept  close  from  the 
fowls  of  the  air.     Destruction  and  death 
say.  We  have  heard  the  fame  thereof  with 
our  ears.    God  under standeth  the  way  there- 
of, and  he  hnoiveth  the  place  thereof.     For 
he  loolceth  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  seeth 
under  the  whole  hea^ven.     To  maize  the  weight 
for  the  winds ;  and  he  weigheth  the  waters 
hy  measure.      When  he  made  a  decree  for 
the  rain,  and  a  way  for  the  lightning  of  the 
thunder.      Then  did  he  see  it,  and  declare 
it;  he  prepared  it,  yea,  and  searched  it  out. 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH    TO    GET    WISDOM.  13T 

And  unto  man  he  said,  Behold,  the  fear  of 
the  Lord,  that  is  ivisdom  ;  and  to  depart 
from  evil  is  understanding T  ^  Thus  we 
perceive  that  the  revelation  God  made 
to  man  in  the  beginning,  in  which  con- 
sists his  highest  wisdom,  is,  ^^  the  fear  of 
the  Lord." 

There  is  a  servile  dread  of  God,  arisins: 
from  a  sense  of  guilt  and  the  awful  desert 
of  sin,  which  sometimes  so  harasses  the 
impenitent,  as  to  cause  them  to  agonize 
under  awful  forebodings  of  coming  wrath. 
But  the  principle  referred  to  in  the  text, 
is  a  holy,  reverential  fear  of  offending 
the  Divine  Majesty,  and  a  tender  concern 
to  please  him  in  all  our  walks  and  ways. 
It  includes  the  whole  of  practical  obedi- 
ence to  the  commands  of  God.  Good 
old  ^*  Noah  moved  loitlf  this  holy  ''fear," 
when  in  prompt  obedience  to  the  com- 
mand of  his  Maker,  he  ''prepared  an  arh 
to  the  saving  of  his  house."^  This  holy 
>  Job  xxviii.,  12-28.  ^  Heb.  xi.,  7. 


138  PRICE    IN    HAND    OF    THE         [SER.   VII. 

principle  can  never  spring  from  unre- 
newed nature.  It  is,  "  tlie  vmdom  that  is 
from  above,''  and,  "  is  first  'pure,  then  peace- 
able,  gentle,  and  easy  to  he  intreated ,  full  of 
mercy  and  good,  fruits,  without  partiality, 
and  without  hypocrisy T^ 

Whoever  takes  the  hand  of  this 
heavenly  guide,  and  follows  her  direc- 
tions, shall  pass  safely  through  the 
perilous  voyage  of  life,  laden,  not  with 
corruptible  treasures ;  but,  with  the 
riches  of  Christ  and  his  gospel,  and 
arrive  at  home,  home  to  heaven,  where 
they  shall  unite  with  kindred  spirits  in 
celebrating  the  praises  of  God  and  the 
Lamb  forever  and  ever.  This  wisdom, 
in  her  ethereal  flights,  stops  not  among 
the  rolling  orbs  of  the  planetarj^  world. 
She  mounts  up  infinitely  higher.  Her 
native  place  is  in  the  palace  of  the  King 
of  Saints  and  angels.  Thither  she 
ascends,  and  unfolds  to  the  eye  of  faith, 
the  glorious  reward  of  righteousness  : — 
*  Jam.  iii.,  17. 


SER.    VII.]       FOOLISH    TO    GET    WISDOM.  139 

heavenly  mansions  —  everlasting  joys  — 
"  the  crown  of  righteousness ,  which  the  Lord, 
the  righteous  judge,  shall  give  at  that  day, 
unto  all  them  that  love  his  appearing."^ 

To  be  destitute  of  this  heavenly  wis- 
dom, and  unconcerned  about  obtainin^: 
it,  however  wise  we  may  be  as  it  respects 
things  that  pertain  to  this  life,  we  are  in 
the  eye  of  God's  Word,  regarded  as 
"foohr  This  is  indeed,  a  mortifying 
epithet,  but  let  us  see  whether  it  be  not 
very  properly  applied  to  all  those  who 
"  have  not  the  fear  of  God  before  their  eyes!' 
If  idleness,  if  a  neglect  to  improve  the 
proper  season  to  labor,  if  a  want  of  fore- 
thought to  lay  up  provision  for  future 
necessities,  be  marks  of  folly  in  a  tem- 
poral sense ;  then,  the  man  who  has  the 
great  work  of  his  personal  salvation 
before  him,  and  spends  all  his  time  in 
matters  of  minor  importance ;  who 
neglects,  in  "  the  accepted  time,''  to  pro- 
^  2d  Tim.  iv.,  8. 


140  PRICE   IN    HAND    OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

vide  himself  with  that  robe  of  righteous- 
ness, in  which  he  "  may  appear  pure  and 
blameless  at  the  coming  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ;"  he,  who  thus  acts, 
may  very  properly  regard  himself  as 
being  superlatively  foolisli. 

What  a  numerous  multitude  among 
our  fellow-men  show  themselves  to  be 
deserving  of  this  opprobrious  epithet. 
There  is  not  a  city,  town,  or  village,  but 
what  is  crowded  with  them.  They  make 
up  the  great  mass  of  mankind.  Hence, 
the  world  may  be  compared  to  a  bedlam. 
The  number  of  our  fellow-creatures 
deserving  to  bear  this  epithet  being  so 
vast,  it  will  not  be  a  matter  of  wonder, 
if  a  goodly  number  be  found  enclosed 
within  these  sacred  walls.  We  cannot 
be  fairly  charged  with  a  want  of  charity 
in  thinking,  that  a  little  honest  and  sober 
reflection  on  the  part  of  some  of  our 
hearers,  would  constrain  them  to  class 
themselves  with  the  number.  There  is 
such    a    thing    as    partial    insanity.      A 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH   TO    GET   WISDOM.  141 

crazy  man  may  converse  quite  rationally 
upon  certain  topics  5  but,  so  soon  as  you 
approach  some  particular  subject,  he 
reasons  no  longer.  Thus  it  is  with  man. 
Place  before  him  his  temporal  interests, 
and  he  acts  like  a  reasonable  being. 
Bend  his  mind  upon  the  various  sciences, 
and  the  deep  researches  of  his  reasoning 
powers,  demonstrate  his  near  relation  to 
superior  beings.  But  lay  before  him  the 
all-important  subject  of  religion,  and 
immediately  you  perceive  the  change. 
However  eminent  he  may  be  as  a 
scholar,  a  statesman,  a  philosopher ; 
however  wise  and  prudent  he  may  be 
in  his  affairs  as  a  farmer,  mechanic  or 
merchant,  with  regard  to  '  the  one  tiling 
needful,'  he  gives  little,  or  no  signs  of 
reason.  Some  are  totally  unconcerned 
about  the  things  that  belong  to  their 
present  and  everlasting  peace.  Others 
have  a  feeble  sense  of  the  importance  of 
this  subject,  but  put  off  the  due  con- 
sideration   of    it    to   a   more    convenient 

13 


142  PRICE   IN    HAND   OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

season.  Another  class,  with  more  ener- 
getic folly  than  the  former,  make  the 
attempt  to  serve  both  God  and  Mammon 
— to  give  half  the  heart  to  the  Lord,  the 
other  half  to  the  world.  Others  again, 
merely  put  on  the  garb  of  religion,  the 
form  of  godliness,  while  they  are  destitute 
of  its  life  and  power.  In  this  way,  the 
great  majority  of  mankind  are  acting  as 
it  relates  to  their  spiritual  and  eternal 
welfare.  Man  thus  suffers  his  precious 
moments  to  pass  away  unimproved,  till, 
alas !  in  an  hour  when  he  thinks  not 
death  comes  :  ''  he  givetJi  %ip  the  ghost,  and 
where  is  hef'^  Is  this  a  rational  mode  of 
acting  ?  What  would  be  thought  of  any 
set  of  persons  who  acted  thus,  when  they 
had  some  great  temporal  interest  at 
stake,  in  danger  of  losing  all  their  pro- 
perty by  fire  ?  If  the  most  of  them  were 
seen  to  be  totally  unconcerned;  others 
putting  off  their  exertions  to  save  their 
effects,   to    a    more    convenient   season ; 

» Job  xiv.,  10. 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH   TO    GET   WISDOM.  143 

others  using  one  hand  to  secure  their  all; 
and  others  merely  putting  on  the  appear- 
ance of  concern ;  would  they  not  be 
regarded  as  insane  persons  ?  But  how 
much  more  foolish  do  they  appear,  who 
act  thus,  in  relation  to  their  present  and 
eternal  welfare.  A  man  may  lose  his 
earthly  goods,  but  in  the  course  of  time, 
by  industry,  frugality  and  economy,  he 
may  succeed  in  accumulating  an  equiva- 
lent to  all  his  losses.  But  when  the  soul 
is  lost,  all  is  lost — the  joys  of  heaven 
once  lost,  are  lost  forever — the  soul  that 
descends  to  the  dismal  regions  of  despair, 
shall  never  be  cheered  by  the  glad  sound 
of  salvation.  How  egregious  then,  is  the 
folly  of  ungodly  men  !  If  their  folly  was 
unavoidable,  they  would  be  excusable. 
For  no  one  can  be  fairly  blamed  for 
unavoidable  ignorance.  But  this  is  not 
the  case.  For  their  folly,  they  alone  are 
to  blame. 


144  PRICE   IN    HAND   OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

The  text  says — 

"  TlIEKE    IS    A    TRICE    IN    THE    HAND  OF  A 
FOOL  TO  GET  WISDOM." 

By  this  we  are  to  understand,  that  the 
means  to  obtain  wisdom,  through  the 
benevolence  of  God,  are  placed  in  our 
hands.  W6  have  reason,  conscience,  the 
holy  scriptures,  the  ordinances  of  God's 
house,  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  the 
aids  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  liberty  of  access 
to  God  through  Christ,  by  prayer  and 
supplication ;  we  have  pious  parents,  re- 
lations, friends,  or  good  books  to  assist 
us.  Here  then  is  a  j2^?7*ce,  a  talent,  or 
rather,  talents  of  inestimable  value  placed 
into  our  hands  to  obtain  wisdom;  and 
by  persevering  in  the  right  use  of  these 
means,  we  cannot  fail  to  attain  it.  St. 
James  says, — ^'  If  any  of  you  lack  icisdom, 
let  him  ash  of  Qod,  that  giveth  to  all  men 
liberally,  and  ujyhraidetli  not  ;  and  it  shall 
he  (jiven  him.  But  let  him  ask  in  faith,  no- 
tiling  loavering.     For  he   that  loavereth  is 


SER.    Vir.]      FOOLISH   TO    GET   WISDOM.  145 

like  a  wave  of  the  sea  driven  imtli  the  tvmd 
and   tossed.     For    let  not  that  man  think 
that  he  shall  receive  anything  of  the  Lord^^ 
But  with    all  these  advantages  in  their 
hands  to  become  wise  unto  salvation,  it 
is   a   melancholy  fact,  that  too  many  of 
our  race  remain  foolish  notwithstanding. 
The  ungodly    are  wont  to   frame   many 
excuses  for  their   folly  in  continuing  in 
their   wretched   state.     They    are  all  so 
frivolous   in    their   character,   that   it  is 
needless  to  detail.     But  whatever  excuses 
they  may  frame  to  account  for  their  not 
being  truly  wise,  in  the  text,  the  grand 
reason  is  declared  to  be,  that  they  have 
''no  heart  to  it!'      "  Wherefore  is  there  a 
price  in  the  hand  of  d  fool  to  get  wisdom, 
seeing  he  hath  no  heart  to  it .?"     That  is,  he 
has   no  sincere  desire  to  obtain  it.     He 
will  not  be  at  the  pains  of  considering 
long  upon  its  nature,  hence  its  transcend- 
ant  excellencies  are  hid  from  his  view. 

James  i.,  5,  7. 
13* 


146  PRICE   IN    HAND   OF   THE         [SER.  Vn. 

And  seeing  no  beauty  in  it,  he  has  no 
ardent  desires  after  it.  His  desires  are 
strong  for  the  perishable  objects  of  time 
and  sense.  He  can  ardently  exclaim  : — 
"  What  shall  loe  eat?  or  What  shall  we 
driiik?  or  Whereioithal  shall  ive  he 
clothed?''^  "  But  none  saith,  where  is  Ovd 
my  maher^  loho  giveth  sojigs  in  the  nightr^ 
Since  ungodly  men,  with  all  the  f^icili- 
ties  kind  Providence  has  given  them  to 
be  wise,  continue  wretchedly  foolish  not- 
withstanding, the  wise  man  enquires, — 
Wherefore  is  it  that  they  have  these  ad- 
vantages? The  question  implies,  that 
these  means  of  wisdom  are  unworthily 
placed, — that  they  are  of  no  essential 
benefit  to  the  possessor.  Hence,  he  says, 
Wherefore  is  this  ?  "  Whei^efore  is  there  a 
^rice  in  the  hand  of  a  fool  to  get  wisdom, 
seeing  he  hath  no  heart  to  itf^ 

We    may    answer,    that    this   price   is 
given — 

*  Matt,  vi.,  31.  *  Job  xxxv.,  10. 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH   TO    GET   WISDOM.  147 

1st.  As  a  clear  demonstration  of  the 
proposition,  that  God  taketh  "  no  pleasure 
in  the  death  of  the  iviched,  hut  that  the 
loicked  turn  from  his  icay  and  live r^  "I 
exhort,''  says  St.  Paul,  "  that  suj^plications, 
prayers y  intercessions  and  giving  of  thanhs 
he  made  for  all  men.  For  this  is  good  and 
acceptahle  in  the  sight  of  God  our  Saviour, 
ivho  ivill  have  all  men  to  he  saved  and  to 
come  to  the  hioivledge  of  the  truth  "^  "  God 
so  loved  the  loorld,''  said  our  Saviour,  "  that 
he  gave  his  only  hegotten  Son,  that  lohosoever 
helieveth  in  him  sliould  not  perish,  hut  have 
everlasting  life!'^  As  a  confirmation  of  the 
glorious  truths  here  announced,  God  has 
graciously  placed  into  the  hand  of  every 
man  ample  means,  which  if  rightly  used, 
will  compass  his  present  and  everlasting 
happiness.  So  the  great  Father  of  us  all, 
may  utter  now  the  same  vehement  com- 
plaint of  every  ungodly  impenitent  sinner, 
as  he  did  with  regard  to  the  base  ingrati- 


Ezek.  xxxiii.,  11.    n  Tim.  ii.,13,  4.   « John  iii.,  16. 


148  PRICE    IN    HAND    OF    THE         [SER.  VII. 

tude  of  his  people  of  old — '^  What  could 
have  heen  done  more  to  my  vineyard,  that  I 
have  7ioi  done  in  itf"^  Furthermore,  the 
^' price'  is  placed  into  the  hand  of  every 
man. 

2d.  That  in  the  great  day  of  account 
the  finally  impenitent  shall  not  be  able  to 
show  any  reason  why  the  sentence  of 
condemnation  should  not  be  passed  upon 
them  for  their  neglect  of  improving  it. 
In  the  parable  of  the  talents  the  servant 
who  had  07ie,  offered  as  an  excuse  for 
not  improving  it,  his  knowledge  of  the 
severity  of  his  Lord  ;  ''reaping  where''  he 
had  ''not  sc/ivn,  and  gathering  ivliere"  he 
had  "not  strawed,"^  But  he  thus  con- 
demned himself.  And  his  Lord  showed 
him,  that  the  very  excuse  he  offered, 
was  a  more  urgent  reason  why  he  should 
have  improved  the  talent  intrusted  to  his 
charge.  Hence  he  was  struck  dumb : 
stripped  of  every  extenuating  plea — forced 

*  Isaiah  v.,  4.  a  j^i^tt.  xxv  ,  2G. 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH    TO    GET    WISDOM.  149 

tacitlj  to  acknowledge  the  sentence : — 
''  Cast  ye  the  u7iprofitahle  servant  into  outer 
darkness;'  to  be  the  just  dement  of  his 
consummate  folly.  Thus  will  it  be  in 
the  last  great  day  with  all  who  shall 
be  found  destitute  of  heavenly  wisdom. 
When  all  the  golden  opportunities  they 
suffered  to  pass  away  unimproved;  the 
many  glorious  privileges  neglected ;  the 
repeated  calls  and  entreaties  of  God's 
providence,  word  and  Spirit  that  have 
been  slighted;  when  all  these  are  brought 
to  their  remembrance;  while  the  Judge 
is  pronouncing  the  sentence,  ''Depart  ye 
cursed,''  they  will  be  constrained  in  inex- 
pressible agony  to  say,  Amen,  to  their 
own  condemnation.  And  what  a  bitter 
ingredient  will  this  be  in  that  cup  of 
indignation,  which  shall  be  their  portion 
forever  and  ever — self-condemnation — 
forever  exclaiming,  I  have  destroyed 
myself ! 

See  the  importance  then,  my  hearers, 


150  PRICE   IN   HAND    OF   THE         [SER.  VII. 

of  duly  improving  the  ^mce  that  God  in 
his  goodness  has  placed  into  your  hands 
to  get  wisdom.  You  are  stewards  of  the 
manifold  grace  of  God.  And  the  day  is 
at  hand,  when  you  will  be  called  to  stand 
at  his  dread  tribunal,  to  render  a  strict 
aecount  of  your  stewardship.  You  are 
surrounded  with  every  necessary  facility 
to  enable  you  to  make  your  peace  with 
God,  your  calling  and  election  sure. 
Through  the  providence  of  God  your  lot 
has  been  cast,  not  amidst  the  darkness  of 
Paganism,  superstition  and  idolatry,  but 
in  a  Christian  land,  under  the  moral 
influences  of  Christian  sabbaths,  religious 
counsel  and  example.  You  have  the 
Bible  in  your  hand,  that  blessed  book, 
which  is  "a  lajitem  unto  our  feet^  and  a 
lif/Jit  unto  our  j^ath^'  which  informs  us  of 
the  great  love  of  our  heavenly  Father  in 
giving  his  "  Son  to  die  for  our  oflences, 
and  to  be  raised  again  for  our  justifica- 
tion," and  his  Holy  Spirit  to  enlighten, 
renew  and  sanctify  our  depraved  nature. 


SER.    VII.]      FOOLISH    TO    GET   WISDOM.  151 

Now  if  you  fail  to  bring  forth  the  fruit 
of  righteousness,  after  having  all  these 
superior  privileges  and  blessings  at  hand, 
how  tremendous  must  be  the  punishment 
that  awaits  you  in  the  eternal  world  ! 
How  can  ye  escape  wrath  to  the  utter- 
most? 

I  beseech  you,  let  not  the  grace  of  God 
be  granted  you  in  vain.  Avoid  the  doom 
of  the  wicked  and  slothful  servant.  In 
all  your  getting,  get  wisdom.  Continue 
no  longer  under  the  shameful  reproach  of 
having  "no  heart  to  it''  Seek  after  it,  for 
it  is  better  than  rubies,  and  all  the  things 
that  may  be  desired  are  not  to  be  com- 
pared to  it.  Seek  it  diligently  and  per- 
severingly.  For  "if  thou  seekest  her  as 
silver,  and  searchest  for  her  as  for  hid 
treasures,  then  shalt  thou  understand  the 
fear  of  the  Lord,  and  find  the  knowledge 
of  God."  And  what  "  thy  hand  findeth 
to  do,''  on  this  great  subject,  "  do  it  with 
thy  might,  for  there  is  7io  work,  nor  device, 
nor  hnowledge,  nor  ivisdom,  in  the  grave 
whither  thou  goest," 


SERMON   YIII. 

THE   SHORTNESS   AND   UNCERTAINTY  OF  TIME. 

"But  this  I  say  brethren,  the  time  is  short." 

1  Cor.  vii.,  29. 

The  sentiment  contained  in  the  words 
of  the  text,  is  one  of  those  solemn  truths 
which  the  mind  of  man  is  averse  duly  to 
contemplate.  Some  airy  phantom,  some 
earthly  vanity,  is  always  cordially  invited 
to  a  prominent  place  in  his  thoughts, 
while  this  serious  truth  is  banished  from 
the  mind  as  an  unwelcome  guest.  The 
promise  of  enjoying  yet  many  days  of 
health,  ease  and  pleasure  here,  though  it 
be  a  lie  conjured  up  by  a  corrupt  and 
deceitful  imagination,  is  listened  to  by  the 
worldling  with  delight;  while  the  truth, 
which    reason,   observation    and    divine 

14 


THE    SHORTNESS   AND         [SER.    VIII. 

revelation  confirm,  is  practically  rejected. 
But  however  averse  we  may  be  to  give 
this  subject  that  due  consideration  which 
its  importance  demands,  its  truthfulness 
nevertheless,  remains  the  same.  Our  in- 
difierence  to  it  cannot  alter  it.  It  becomes 
us,  therefore,  as  rational  and  accountable 
beings,  calmly,  but  seriously  to  consider, 
how  short  the  time  is  that  w^e  have  to 
remain  upon  the  stage  of  action.  And 
may  the  Holy  S23irit  help  us  so  to  con- 
sider it,  that  we  may  be  led  to  apply  our 
hearts  unto  heavenly  wisdom. 

"  The  time  is  sliort''  Compared  with 
that  eternal  duration  which  is  without 
beginning  or  end;  time,  in  its  most  ex- 
tended sense,  stretching  out  its  line  from 
the  dawn  of  creation  to  the  final  consum- 
mation of  all  things,  is  short.  For  though 
our  planet  should  continue  its  diurnal  and 
annual  revolution  a  thousand  times  longer 
than  it  has  already,  a  period  is  to  arrive, 
when  its  present  career  through  its  ap- 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME.  155 

pointed  pathway  will  be  terminated — 
when  "  it  shall  ivax  old  as  doth  a  garment ^ 
and  he  changed^  But,  eternity,  properly 
speaking,  has  neither  beginning  nor  end. 
There  can  be  no  proportion,  therefore, 
between  the  longest  duration  of  time  and 
that  of  eternity.  But  it  becomes  us  to 
contemplate  that  portion  of  time  which  is 
parcelled  out  to  us  as  individuals,  by  the 
Author  and  giver  of  life.  And  how  ex- 
ceedingly small  is  the  part  allotted  us. 
In  the  Adamic  age,  the  life  of  man  was 
reckoned  up  by  hundreds.  Adam,  the 
father  of  the  human  race,  lived  nine  hun- 
dred and  thirty  years  before  he  died. 
Seth,  his  son,  lived  nine  hundred  and 
twelve  years,  and  he  died.  Enos,  his 
grand-son,  lived  nine  hundred  and  ^yq 
years,  and  he  died :  and  so  the  catalogue 
proceeds  in  its  statement  of  the  length- 
ened lives  of  the  patriarchs  who  lived 
before  the  flood.  But  in  the  time  of  the 
Psalmist  David,  we  find  human  life  to  be 
reckoned  up  not  by  hundreds  as  before, 


166  THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

but  by  scores.  "  The  days  of  our  years'^' 
says  he,  "  are  three-score  years  and  ten,  and 
if  hy  reason  of  strength  they  he  four-score 
years,  yet  is  their  strength  labour  and  sor- 
row, for  it  is  soon  cut  off,  and  we  fly  awayT^ 
As  if  years  were  too  large  a  point  by  which 
to  reckon  up  the  shortness  of  human  hfe, 
the  Scriptures  count  it  by  months.  "  The 
number  of  his  months  are  loith  thee,"^  Very 
frequently  it  is  reckoned  by  days.  "  Man, 
that  is  horn  of  a  looman,''  says  Job,  "  is  of 
few  daysr^  Nay,  it  is  accounted  but  one 
day.  "  Till  he  shall  accamfplish  a^  an  hire" 
ling  his  dayJ'*  The  apostle  Paul,  com- 
pares it  to  a  still  shorter  period — a  mo- 
ment.  "  Our  light  affliction,"  says  he, 
^'ivhich  is  hut  for  a  momentr^  So  short  is 
human  life,  as  if  there  could  not  be  any 
thing  in  nature  to  give  a  just  representa- 
tion of  it,  the  Psalmist  says, — "  Mine  age 
is  as  nothing  hefore  thee^^     A  very  slight 

1  Psa.  xc,  10.  ""  Job  xiv.,  5. 

^  Job  xiv.,  1.  ■*  Job  xiv.,  6. 

*  2  Cor.  iv.,  17.  ^  Psa.  xxxix.,  5. 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME.  157 

observation  will  lead  us  to  acknowledge 
the  justness  of  this  melancholy  view  of 
human  life.  If  we  look  over  this  congre- 
gation, or  any  other  assembled  for  a  simi- 
lar purpose;  if  we  take  a  larger  survey, 
and  view  the  community  in  which  we 
live,  how  few  comparatively  do  we  see 
whose  heads  are  crowned  with  the  frost 
of  seventy  winters.  We  behold  only  a 
few  here  and  there  moving  along  the 
shore  of  time,  as  relics  of  days  gone  by; 
and  their  fewness  are  as  monuments  bear- 
ing our  text  as  an  inscription,  to  be  read 
and  seriously  pondered  by  every  beholder. 
The  silent  but  significant  language  of 
their  whitened  locks  and  furrowed  cheeks, 
to  the  present  generation,  is,  "  Brethrei^, 
THE  TIME  IS  SHORT." — It  is  true  that  we 
have  reached  our  three-score  years  and 
ten,  but  this  point  in  human  existence, 
the  great  majority  of  our  race  never 
attain.  The  large  circle  of  those  with 
whom  we  passed  the  blithesome  hours  of 
youth,  have  long   since   shot  the    awful 

14* 


158  THE   SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

gulf  of  a  boundless  eternity.  A  few  of 
us  stand  trembling  upon  the  shore,  to  ad- 
monish you  with  a  silent  but  impressive 
voice,  how  vain  it  is  for  you  to  calculate 
upon  attaining  the  days  of  our  lengthened 
years.  For  long,  long  before  man  reaches 
this,  he  enters  the  narrow  house  appointed 
for  all  living.  The  most  of  our  fellow 
creatures  die  like  a  flower  blasted  in  the 
morning,  or  at  noon,  a  fact,  that  shows 
how  delusive  is  the  hope  of  a  protracted 
life.  Another  point  worthy  of  our  con- 
sideration is,  that  time  is  as  uncertain  as 
it  is  short.  The  present  moment  is  all 
that  we  can  safely  calculate  upon.  The 
future  is  veiled  in  the  bosom  of  the  great 
Eternal.  He  only  knows  whether  or  not 
any  one  present  shall  survive  the  setting 
sun.  We  know  not  what  a  day  may 
bring  forth.  Neither  youth  nor  superior 
strength  is  the  least  security  against  the 
sudden  attack  of  death.  His  shafts  fly 
so  promiscuously,  that  none  can  tell  who 
will   be    the    next    victim.       Sudden   as 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OE   TIME.  159 

lightning  sometimes  his  arrows  fly,  and 
wound  and  kill  in  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye.  Before  another  day  rolls  over  our 
heads,  for  all  that  we  know  to  the  con- 
trary, some  one  of  us  may  behold  that 
veil  removed  which  now  hides  from  our 
view,  the  grand,  but  awful  scenes  of  the 
eternal  world. 

The  short  and  uncertain  tenure  of 
human  life  would  be  of  small  moment 
were  it  not  connected  with  other  results 
of  the  most  solemn  and  overwhelming 
character.  God,  in  his  great  wisdom  and 
goodness  saw  fit  to  create  different  ranks 
and  orders  of  beings,  and  to  place  them 
in  different  localities  in  his  wide  domin- 
ions, to  answer  certain  good  purposes. 
Upon  our  earth  we  behold  a  variety  of 
living  creatures,  some  of  which,  so  far  as 
we  know,  have  no  relation  at  all  to  another 
state  of  being — all  their  movements  are 
confined  within  the  small  circle  of  time 
here  allotted  to  them.  But  man  is  placed 
in  circumstances  quite  different.    He,  like 


160  THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

the  other  creatures,  has  but  a  small  space 
of  time  to  carry  on  his  operations  here, 
but  his  movements  are  not  confined,  like 
theirs,  within  the  little  boundary  marked 
out  to  him  in  this  world.  No.  His  do- 
minion over  the  rest  of  the  creatures,  his 
superior  skill,  his  boundless  desires,  his 
hopes,  his  fears,  all  more  than  intimate 
that  he  has  within  him  a  spirit,  destined 
to  survive  this  material  system,  and  that 
his  future  happiness  or  misery  will  depend 
upon  the  character  formed  in  this  state 
of  mortality.  These  solemn  and  over- 
whelming truths,  indicated  by  the  light 
of  reason,  are  set  forth  in  the  brightness 
of  a  sun-beam  upon  the  inspired  page. 
We  are  there  told  not  only  that  life  is 
short,  that  "  it  is  appointed  unto  men  once 
to  die,''  but  we  are  also  told  that  "  after  this 
the  judgment''^ — that  '^  God  loill  render  to 
every  man  according  to  his  deeds, — to  them 
who  hy  patient  continuance  in  well-doing, 
seek  for  glory,  honor,  immortality,  eternal 
*  llebrcws;  ix.,  27. 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY    OF    TIME.  161 

Z^^/'  while  on  the  other  hand,  "  unto  tliem 
that  are  contentious,  and  do  not  obey  the 
truth,  hut  obey  mirigliteousness,  indignation 
and  wrath,  tribulatio7i  and  angicish,  ujpon 
every  soul  that  doeth  evil."^  These  con- 
siderations, brethren,  stamp  upon  our 
time  an  incalculable  value,  connected  as 
it  is  with  our  eternal  destinies.  We  may 
contemplate  the  shortness  of  life  as  an 
abstract  truth,  somewhat  unmoved.  But 
it  becomes  us  to  consider  it  as  connected 
with  its  thrilling  results — we  should  ever 
bear  in  mind  that  our  few  days  here  below 
will  tell  whether  we  shall  be  happy  for- 
ever in  heaven,  or  forever  miserable  in 
hell.  This  is  the  sober  view  in  which 
we  should  always  regard  this  subject; 
this  is  the  view  in  which  the  Apostle 
regarded  it  when  he  lifted  up  his  voice 
and  pronounced  with  such  solemn  empha- 
sis, saying, — "  But  this  I  say,  brethren,  the 
time  is  shorts 

^  Rom.  ii.,  6,  7,  8,  9. 


162  THE   SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

Let  US  inquire  now,  what  influence  this 
subject  should  have  upon  our  Hfe  and  con- 
duct. Should  the  thought,  that  in  a  few 
days  we  shall  be  in  the  world  of  spirits, 
have  the  effect  of  filling  our  minds  with 
superstitious  dread,  and  of  imbittering 
our  whole  lives  with  the  fearful  apprehen- 
sion of  death  ?  No.  This  course  would 
have  the  tendency  of  rendering  our  lives 
still  shorter,  and  would  be  contrary  to 
sound  reason,  and  contrary  to  God's  ex- 
press command : — "  Thou  shalt  not  kill." 
Again,  because  our  days  are  few,  should 
we  therefore  leave  all  converse  with  our 
fellow-men,  seclude  ourselves  in  some  re- 
tired cell,  and  there  spend  our  time  in 
mortifying  the  body  for  the  good  of  the 
soul  ?  This  would  be  a  superstitious  ab- 
surdity, but  no  part  of  Christian  duty. 
Utter  seclusion  from  the  world  is  nowhere 
enjoined.  The  Bible  addresses  us  as  mem- 
bers of  society,  and  enjoins  upon  each  in 
his  vocation  and  calling  to  serve  the  Lord 
faithfully — ^' to  glorify  God  in  body  and 


SER,    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY  OF   TIME.  163 

spirit  which  are  his."  The  godly  are 
represented  therein,  as  the  light  of  the 
world.  And  they  are  called  upon  in  all 
their  relations,  whether  domestic,  civil  or 
religious,  to  let  their  light  shine,  that 
others  seeing  their  good  works  may  be 
led  to  glorify  their  Father  in  heaven.  In 
the  words  that  immediately  follow  the 
text,  the  apostle  clearly  shows  what  effect 
the  sentiment  therein  contained  should 
have  upon  us:  "But  this  I  sai/^  hretliren, 
the  time  is  shoi^t.  It  remaineth  therefore^ 
that  they  that  have  wives  he  as  though  they 
had  none,  and  they  that  weep  as  though  they 
ivept  not,  and  they  that  rejoice  as  though 
they  rejoiced  not,  and  they  that  huy  as  though 
they  possessed  not,  and  they  that  use  this 
toorld  as  oiot  ahicsing  it,  for  the  fashion  of 
this  world  passeth  away." 

We  learn  from  this  subject,  the  impor- 
tance of  setting  a  proper  estimate  on 
all  earthly  things — of  regarding  them  as 
they  really  are,  fleeting  and  swiftly  pass- 


164  THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

ing  away.     We  may  lawfully  enjoy,  yet 
we  should   always  endeavor  to  preserve 
ourselves  from  immoderate  attachment  to 
the  most  endearing  objects.     We  should 
sit  loose  from  the  world,  and  be   found 
cultivating   that    pious    frame    of   mind 
that  will  enable  us  in  cheerful  submission 
to  take  our  departure  whenever  a  wise 
and  gracious  Providence  shall  call  us  so  to 
do.     Such  a  temper  as  this  will  keep  the 
mind  properly  balanced.     With  its  affec- 
tions set   on   things    above    and  not   on 
things  on  the  earth,  it  will  not  be  puffed 
up  with  the  joys,  nor  cast  down  by  the 
Borrows  of  earth.     If,  with  such  a  tem- 
per, the  Christian  be  in  trouble,  sorrow, 
need,  sickness,  or   any  other   adversity, 
possessing   natural  sensibilities,  he    may 
weep.     But  knowing  that  all  his  troubles 
and    adversities   will    soon   end   in    the 
tomb,  he  weeps  as  though  he  wept  not. 
Does   the  sun  of  prosperity  shine  upon 
his  path  ?     He  rejoices  as  he  should,  and 
gives  thanks    to   the    Author   of    every 


SER.   VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME,  165 

good  and  perfect  gift.  But  being  duly 
sensible  of  the  transitory  and  changing 
nature  of  all  earthly  things— knowing 
that  the  clearest  morning  sky  may  be 
overcast  with  clouds  long  before  the  noon, 
he  tempers  all  his  earthly  joys  with 
godly  fear.  This  is  the  noble  temper 
with  which  the  apostle  designed  to  in- 
spire his  brethren  at  Corinth — a  kind  of 
independence  of  all  temporal  things. — 
Not  despising  the  good  things  of  the 
world,  but  putting  a  due  estimate  upon 
them,  using  them  in  their  proper  place — 
not  seeking  happiness  in  them,  but  in  the 
only  living  and  true  God.  This  is  the  tem- 
per that  becomes  us  as  dying  men  diligent- 
ly to  cultivate.  With  our  hearts  thus  aloof 
from  earth,  our  conversation  in  heaven, 
when  the  time  of  our  departure  is  at 
hand,  we  shall  be  kept  in  perfect  peace, 
and  enabled  to  pass  through  the  valley 
and  shadow  of  death,  fearing  no  evil. 
We  may  then  in  the  triumphant  lan- 
guage   of    St.    Paul,    exclaim — "/  have 

15 


166  THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my 
course,  I  have  kept  the  faith  :  henceforth 
there  is  laid  uj)  for  me  a  craimi  of  righteous- 
ness, which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge, 
shall  give  me  at  that  day :  and  not  to  me 
only,  hut  unto  all  them  also  that  love  his  ap- 
pearingT^  But  on  the  other  hand,  if  we 
suffer  our  minds  to  linger  here  with  fond 
attachment  to  the/things  of  earth,  we 
shall  be  lifted  up  by  its  joys,  and  thrown 
down  by  its  sorrows ;  and  when  we  are 
called  to  die,  having  devoted  all  our  at- 
tention to  the  things  of  time,  the  soul 
will  be  forced  away  into  eternity,  with  a 
weight  of  unrepented  sins  that  must 
inevitably  sink  it  into  endless  perdition. 
For,  "  except  a  man  he  horn  of  water  and 
of  the  Spirit,"  our  Lord  declares  that  ''he 
cannot  enter  into  the  Jcingdom  of  God"^ 
He  can  neither  be  admitted  into  the 
kingdom  of  grace  here,  nor  participate  in 
the  ineffable  glories  of  his  kingdom  here- 
after. As  it  is  not  in  man  to  desire 
*  2(1  Tim.  iv.,  7,  8.  =  St.  Jno.  iii.,  5. 


siER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME.  167 

misery — all  would  like  at  last,  after  they 
have  shook  off  this  mortal  coil,  to  escape 
the  damnation  of  hell,  and  enter  upon  an 
endless  career-  of  happiness  in  heaven. 
But  this  cannot  be,  there  must  be  a  pre- 
vious fitness,  a  preparation  in  order  to 
participate  in  the  happiness  of  the  saints 
in  light.  Otherwise,  heaven  itself  would 
be  a  hell.  The  imperfect  happiness  that 
falls  to  the  lot  of  mortals  here  on  earth, 
flows  from  congeniality  of  mind,  sentiment 
and  affection.  And  the  same  law  pre- 
vails among  the  society  of  the  blessed. 
The  inhabitants  of  that  glorious  region 
are  all  holy — they  have  one  common  cen- 
tre of  attraction — they  all  harmonize  in 
adoring,  worshipping,  and  praising  Him 
who  is  God  over  all  blessed  forever. 
Place  an  unholy  being  in  sight  of  the 
tree  of  life  that  is  in  the  midst  of  the 
Paradise  of  God,  and  of  those  fountains 
of  living  waters  to  which  the  redeemed 
of  the  Lord  are  led,  and  let  him  hear 
that  great  multitude  which  no  man  can 


168 


THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 


number,  and  all  the  angels  that  burn 
around  the  throne,  let  him  hear  them 
in  full  chorus  sing :  —  "  Blessing  and 
glory,  and  wisdom,  and  thanksgiving, 
and  honor,  and  power,  and  might  be  unto 
our  God  forever  and  ever ;"  so  far  would 
he  be  from  partici^Dating  in  the  general 
joj,  that  his  misery  would  be  increased. 
He  would  turn  away  with  a  look  of  malig- 
nant envy  and  deep  despair,  exclaiming — 

"  Which  way  I  fly  is  hell, 
Myself  am  hell/' 

The  hope  therefore  that  may  be  enter- 
tained by  the  ungodly,  of  finally  sharing 
in  the  blessedness  of  heaven,  is  sure  to 
meet  with  an  awfully  sad  disappointment. 
"  If  we  SOLO  to  the  flesh,  we  shall  of  the  flesh 
reap  corruption,  hut  if  tve  soio  to  the  Spirit, 
we  shall  of  the  Spirit  reap  life  everlasting^ 
And  this  w^ork  of  sowing  to  the  Spirit, 
must  be  attended  to  in  the  proper  season. 
You  have  a  day  in  which  you  may  labour 
with  success.  But  it  is  only  a  day — a 
day  swiftly  passing  away.     0  why  should 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY   OF   TIME.  169 

we  be  grovelling  here,  seeing  that  we 
shall  so  soon  be  called  away  to  try  the 
realities  of  the  eternal  world?  Does  it 
not  become  us  to  be  up  and  doing  the 
work  of  our  soul's  salvation  while  it  is 
called,  to  day  ?  This  is  the  great  lesson 
that  a  mysterious  Providence  is  enforcing 
upon  us  by  the  awful  plague*  that  is  now 
sweeping  off  the  race  by  hundreds,  both 
in  this  and  in  other  countries.  God  now 
impressively  calls  upon  men  "to  consider 
their  ways,"  "  to  do  justly,  love  mercy, 
and  to  walk  humbly  before  him."  Short- 
sighted indeed  must  he  be  who  has  failed 
to  observe  the  growing  disposition  to  cast 
off  the  fear  of  God,  the  wholesome  re- 
straints of  religion,  to  profane  the  Lord's 
day — to  lessen  the  influence  of  churches 
and  ministers,  and  all  sacred  institutions. 
Indeed,  even  children  are  now  much  wiser 
than  their  parents,  guardians  and  teachers, 
in  their  own  estimation.  Many  of  these 
young  wiseacres,  have  yet  to  learn  the 

*  The  Cholera. 
*16 


170  THE    SHORTNESS   AND  [SER.    VIII. 

rudiments  of  moral  science.  They  may, 
notwithstanding,  be  seen  with  all  the 
pompous  air  of  assumed  independence, 
uniting  in  the  mad  cry, — ''down  loWi 
churches,  doicn  icitli  the  ministryr  And 
this  spirit  is  doing  its  legitimate  work  of 
devastation  and  ruin.  A  large  contribu- 
tion for  a  ball,  club  supper,  or  some  other 
demoralizing  amusement,  can  be  raised 
with  ten-fold  more  ease,  than  even  a 
paltry  penny  collection  to  sustain  a 
church,  or  Sabbath  school  institution. 
We  speak  now  with  general  reference. 
We  believe  it  to  be  universally  true,  that 
there  is  a  growing  disregard  among  men 
to  all  that  is  godly,  holy  and  good.  Men 
are  growing  wiser,  but  not  better.  They 
are  making  wonderful  improvements  in 
the  arts  and  sciences.  But  their  minds 
are  evidently  blinded  more  and  more  by 
the  god  of  this  w^orld,  who  leads  them 
captive  at  his  will.  In  view  of  such  a 
state  of  things,  is  it  any  wonder  that  we 
behold  God's  judgments  abroad    in    the 


SER.    VIII.]       UNCERTAINTY    OF    TIME.  I7l 

earth — "  the  pestilence  walking  in  dark- 
ness and  destroying"  its  victims  "  at 
noonday."  For  his  usual  method  has 
been,  that  when  his  appointed  agencies 
have  failed  to  reclaim  men  from  the  error 
of  their  ways,  he  has  uniformly  put  forth 
the  fearful  arm  of  vengeance.  Let  us  be 
wise,  and  improve  the  awful  visitation  in- 
flicted upon  us,  by  sincere  repentance  ;  by 
cultivating  works  of  piety  and  love  j  be- 
seeching him  to  turn  away  his  anger,  that 
we  perish  not.  And,  ''  ivhat  thy  hand 
findetli  to  do,''  on  this  subject,  "  do  it  lolth 
thy  might,  for  there  is  no  ivorTc'  to  be  done 
in  this  matter,  "  no  device,''  no  scheme  to 
be  devised  for  your  salvation,  ^'nohnow- 
ledge"  of  this  to  be  obtained  'Hn  the 
grave,"  of  which  we  are  now  so  frequently 
reminded,  by  the  mourners  daily  walking 
the  streets,  carrying  man  to  his  long 
home.  I  beseech  you,  therefore,  to  attend 
to  the  things  that  belong  to  your  peace, 
now  while  you  may,  lest  they  be  forever 
hid  from  your  eyes. 


sehmon  IX. 

ADMONITION    TO    REDEEM    THE    TIME. 

"  Redeeming  the  time  because  the  days  are  evil." 

Eph.  V.  16. 

The  benevolent  Author  of  our  exis- 
tence, has  allotted  us  a  portion  of  time,  in 
order  that  we  may  attend  to  the  various 
duties  that  devolve  upon  us  in  our  several 
stations  in  life,  and  to  prepare  by  sober, 
righteous  and  godly  living,  for  the  solemn 
concerns  of  death  and  eternity.  And 
when  we  are  brought  seriously  to  reflect 
upon  the  very  short  space  that  is  granted 
to  us  individually,  and  the  great  and  im- 
portant work  that  must  be  done  to  secure 
our  everlasting  happiness,  and  escape  the 
wrath  to  come,  together  with  the  many 
difficulties  and  dangers  to  which  we  are 


174  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

perpetually  exposed :  when  we  thus  reflect, 
time  assumes  an  importance  with  which 
it  would  be  well  to  have  our  minds  at  all 
times  duly  impressed.  It  was  in  this 
point  of  view,  its  relation  to  the  eternal 
world,  that  caused  the  apostle  so  ear- 
nestly to  exhort  Christians,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  text,  to  Redeem  the  time.  He 
regards  it  as  a  most  precious  gem  that 
should  be,  so  to  speak,  bought  up,  and 
never  suffered  to  be  lost,  thrown  away, 
or  wasted  in  idleness,  sloth,  vicious  prac- 
tices and  pursuits;  but  to  be  redeemed 
out  of  their  hands,  and  employed  in  that 
way  which  is  consistent  with  the  dictates 
of  an  enlightened  conscience,  and  the 
revealed  word  of  God.  To  redeem  the 
time,  therefore,  is  not  to  recall  hours  that 
are  past  and  gone.  This  is  impossible. 
But  it  is  to  employ  the  present  in  that 
manner  that  will  promote  our  own  true 
peace,  the  welfare  of  those  around  us, 
and  thus  secure  the  aj^probation  of  our 
Creator. 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM   THE   TIME.  175 

We  should  redeem  the  time. 

1.  From  idleness.  An  idler,  one  who 
has  no  regular  employment  either  for  his 
head  or  hands,  is  one  of  the  most  mise- 
rable and  contemptible  creatures  that 
society  can  possibly  be  infested  with. 
Such  an  one  is  not  only  a  misery  to  him- 
self, but  exerts  also  a  most  pernicious 
influence  upon  all  with  whom  he  asso- 
ciates. God  created  man  with  active  en- 
ergies; and  he  evidently  designed  that 
he  should  put  them  forth  to  some  good 
purpose,  in  whatever  state  of  life  he  may 
be  providentially  placed.  Active  indus- 
try is  as  much  a  religious  duty,  as  it  is 
indispensable  to  our  temporal  comforts. 
" Be  not  slotJiful  in  business"  says  the  in- 
spired apostle,  hwi" fervent  inspirit  ^serving 
the  Lordr^  In  thus  uniting  lawful  indus- 
try, with  fervency  of  spirit,  serving  the  Lcyrd, 
he  evidently  designed  to  give  it  a  sacred 
character.  The  reason  why  active  indus- 
^  Rom.  xii.,  11. 


176  ADMONITION   TO  [SER.  IX. 

try  may  be  regarded  in  close  contact  with 
religion,  is,  that  a  habit  of  diligence  is 
thereby  cultivated,  which  is  indispensable 
to  true  religion.  Moral  virtue  and  reli- 
gion are  sure  to  suffer  wherever  idleness 
prevails.  It  is  an  enemy  to  all  good,  and 
the  nursery  of  every  evil  and  vicious 
principle  and  practice.  An  idler,  there- 
fore, should  be  shunned,  as  you  would  the 
plague  or  pestilence.  These  remarks  may 
not  apply  to  any  one  present:  each  one 
may  readily  point  to  his  daily  avocation 
as  a  just  refutation  of  the  charge  of  idle- 
ness, so  far  as  temporary  matters  are  con- 
cerned. This  is  all  very  well  in  its  place, 
we  are  every  way  disposed  to  award  to 
you  all  the  credit  that  is  due  to  an  atten- 
tive regard  to  daily  business.  But  there 
is  such  a  thing  as  idleness  in  another 
direction  in  which  you  may  not  so  easily 
ward  olf  the  conviction  of  your  guilt. 
We  are  compound  beings,  possessed  of  an 
immaterial,  as  well  as  a  material  and 
mortal  nature.    And  the  same  great  Eter- 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM   THE   TIME.  177 

nal  who  has  made  it  obligatory  upon  us 
to  be  active  and  industrious  in  view  of 
the  temporal  comforts  of  the  body ;  has 
also  made  it  our  solemn  and  imperative 
duty,  to  be  diligent,  actively  engaged  with 
reference  to  the  soul,  upon  which  he  has 
stamped  his  own  image  of  immortality. 
What  are  you  doing  in  this  direction? 
What  efforts  are  you  putting  forth  to 
"  enter  in  at  the  straight  gate ;" — "  to  lay 
hold  on  eternal  life,'' — to  have  God  for 
your  reconciled  friend  and  father,  and 
your  names  written  in  the  Lamb's  book 
of  life  ?  Ah !  you  cannot  nullify  the 
charge  of  idleness  here.  You  are  com- 
pelled to  acknowledge  in  your  own  minds 
that  the  charge  is  fully  sustained  in  your 
case.  You  are  aware  of  having  suffered 
many  hours  to  pass  away,  so  far  from 
having  been  employed  to  any  good  pur- 
pose, that  they  may  be  considered  as  total 
blanks  in  your  existence.  Your  golden 
moments  have  flown  swiftly  by,  and  you 
have  looked  on  with   as  much  thought- 

16 


178  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

lessness  and  indifference,  as  if  j^our  Crea- 
tor had  sent  you  into  the  world  for  no 
other  purpose  than  to  sit  down  and  quietly 
repose  in  a  state  of  spiritual  stupor  and 
inactivity — doing  nothing  in  reference  to 
your  own  salvation,  or  the  salvation  of 
others.  Our  days  may  be  suffered  to  pass 
away  as  if  they  were  of  no  account;  but 
it  will  be  seen  in  a  coining  day,  that  time 
wasted  and  unimproved  was  noticed  by 
Him  with  whom  we  have  to  do.  It  will 
be  seen  to  your  terror  and  dismay,  unless 
averted  by  timely  repentance,  that  every 
vacant  hour  will  be  so  many  witnesses 
rising  up  around  you  in  the  day  of  judg- 
ment, to  condemn  you.  Your  fate  will 
be  similar  to  the  unprofitable  servant 
who  hid  his  talent  in  the  earth.  Time 
is  a  most  precious  talent  granted  us  to  be, 
employed  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  God; 
but  spiritual  idlers  bury  this  inestimable 
jewel  in  the  grave  of  their  "earthly,  sen- 
sual and  devilish"  pursuits  and  practices. 
What  else  have  thoy  any  ground  to  expect, 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM    THE   TIME.  179 

but  to  have  the  awful  commission  exe- 
cuted upon  them. — "  Cast  ye  the  unprofit- 
able servant  into  outer  darJmess :  there  shall 
he  weeping,  and  gnashing  of  teeth T^ 

We  ought  to  redeem  time. 

2.  From  vain  and  vicious  pleasures. 
Man  has  found  out  a  variety  of  ways  to 
amuse  his  fancy,  and  give  pleasure  to  his 
corrupt  taste.  And  to  gratify  himself  in 
this  respect,  he  scarcely  begins  to  calcu- 
late the  cost.  His  estimate  of  the  plea- 
sures of  the  world  is  so  high,  that  the  cost 
of  participation  is  scarcely  thought  of. 
To  witness  a  theatrical  performance,  to 
participate  in  a  ball,  or  some  other  con- 
vivial party,  his  hand  readily  opens,  and 
his  means  are  freely  expended;  but  to 
contribute  to  the  cause  of  God,  religion 
and  humanity,  it  is  done,  if  done  at  all, 
with  a  mean,  parsimonious  and  grudging 
spirit.  All  this  clearly  shows  how  strong 
1  Matt.  XXV.,  30. 


180  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

a  hold  transitory  pleasures  have  in  the 
affections,  excluding  therefrom  all  that  is 
truly  good,  holy  and  divine.  But  what 
after  all  is  the  character  of  these  pleasures 
upon  which  there  is  such  a  high  estimate 
placed  ?  They  are  all  vain  and  empty  as 
a  bubble  on  the  w^ave.  They  are  like  a 
dream  which  assumes  all  the  appearance 
of  reality,  till  we  awake  from  our  slumber 
and  discover  the  deception. 

They  leave  no  trace  upon  the  mind  that 
can  be  dwelt  upon  with  real  satisfaction, 
like  that  which  follows  a  virtuous  and  re- 
ligious course.  On  the  contrary,  the  pur- 
suit of  the  vanities  of  life,  is  not  only  time 
lost,  but  it  is  sure  to  bring  in  its  train 
that  bitter  remorse,  and  those  keen  up- 
braidings,  which  foreshadow  to  the  guilty 
mind,  the  wrath  to  come.  0  ye  lovers  of 
pleasures  more  than  lovers  of  God,  you 
who  are  even  now  indulging  glowing 
anticipations  of  worldly  joys,  hear  the  im- 
pressive voice  of  inspiration  and  ponder 
your  steps.     "  Rejoice,    0  youmj  man  in 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM   THE   TIME.  181 

thy  youth,  and  let  thy  heart  cheer  thee  in  the 
days  of  thy  youth,  and  loalh  in  the  icays  of 
thy  heart,  and  in  the  sight  of  thine  eyes:  hut 
hnoio  thou,  that  for  all  these  things  God  ivill 
bring  thee  into  judgment.''^  Plow  will  you 
then  answer  for  so  much  of  your  misspent 
time  in  unsatisfying  and  vicious  plea- 
sures ?  Will  you  say  in  the  presence  of 
Jesus,  who  left  us  an  example  that  we 
might  follow  his  steps,  will  you  say  in  his 
presence,  that  you  considered  them  inno- 
cent amusements?  0  be  wise,  and 
redeem  the  time  by  employing  your  pre- 
cious moments,  not  in  hewing  out  cisterns, 
broken  cisterns  that  can  hold  no  water ; 
but  in  seeking  substantial  pleasures; 
that  flow  from  an  evidence  of  your 
acceptance  with  God,  and  your  adoption 
into  the  family  of  heaven. 

Much  time  may  be  redeemed. 

3.     From     unprofitable     conversation. 
^  Ecc.  xi.  9. 

IG- 


182  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

Man  is  a  social  being,  and  may  therefore 
derive  much  improvement,  both  in  an 
intellectual  and  moral  point  of  view,  by 
a  free  interchange  of  sentiments  and 
opinions  upon  a  proper  subject,  with  his 
associates  and  friends.  The  mere  sugges- 
tion of  another  who  has  viewed  the  sub- 
ject in  a  different  light  from  ourselves, 
may  in  a  moment  free  the  mind  from 
some  difficulty  that  might  take  days  and 
weeks  of  private  investigation  to  remove. 
Besides,  there  is  a  refined  pleasure  attend- 
ing this  mutual  flow  of  thought.  A  per- 
son travelling  a  journey  in  pursuit  of 
something  valuable,  may  enjoy  a  good 
degree  of  pleasure  by  anticipating  the 
object  of  his  desire,  but  how  is  his  joy 
increased,  when  accompanied  on  the  road 
by  associates  of  congenial  minds.  It  is 
thus  with  a  circle  of  friends  when  they 
convene  together,  and  employ  their  time 
in  the  reciprocal  interchange  of  thought 
upon  a  suitable  theme.  But  when  per- 
sons  meet  together  and  pass   away,  the 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM    THE    TIME.  183 

time  in  worse  than  idle  talk,  circulating 
tales  of  slander,  whispering,  backbiting, 
and  speaking  evil  of  their  fellow-men, 
this  is  killino;  time.  And  how  manv 
even  among  the  professed  followers  of 
Christ,  too  often  squander  away  their 
precious  moments  in  this  way.  When 
they  are  found  together,  instead  of  ad- 
hering to  the  Apostolic  injunction,  aim- 
ing by  their  conversation,  "  to  edify,  to 
minister  grace'  to  those  ^3 resent,  there  is 
too  often  a  disposition  manifested  to  in- 
tlict  an  injury  upon  the  absent,  forgetting 
that  for  "  every  idle  word  that  men  shall 
speah,  they  shall  give  account  thereof  in  the 
day  of  judgment!''^ 

As  candidates  for  eternity,  we  should 
also  redeem  the  time. 

4.  From  Worldly  business.  Diligent 
attention  to  the  lawful  business  of  life,  is 
unquestionably  a  duty  indispensable.  "  If 

*  Matt,  xii.,  36. 


184  Admonition  to  [ser.  ix. 

any  j^rovide  not  for  his  oxvn,  and  specially 
for  those  of  his  oivn  house,  he  is  worse  than 
an  infideir^  But,  we  are  not  to  infer 
from  this  inspired  declaration,  the  liberty 
of  being  absorbed  in  worldly  business. 
The  most  devoted  busines  man  is  careful 
to  redeem  sufficient  time  to  partake  of 
his  daily  food.  And  should  there  be  no 
time  specially  devoted  to  attaining  the 
bread  that  came  down  from  heaven  ? 
Shall  the  body  only  be  nourished,  while 
the  soul,  the  deathless  part,  is  suffered  to 
jierish  for  lack  of  that  spiritual  meat  that 
endureth  to  everlasting  life  ?  What  ex- 
cuse will  be  given  by  you  when  called 
to  give  a  strict  account  of  your  steward- 
ship at  the  awful  tribunal  of  the  Judge  ? 
Will  you  say  that  business  was  so  urgent 
that  you  could  not  spare  any  time  for 
purely  religious  purposes  ?  Such  a  frivo- 
lous excuse  may  hush  the  voice  of  con- 
science now,  but  it  will  not  ansVer  in  the 
great  day  of  the  Lord.  David  was 
1 1  Tim.  v.,  8. 


SER.  IX.]  REDEE31    THE   TIME.  185 

exalted  to  the  throne,  and  had  the  cares 
and  perplexities  pertaining  to  the  charge 
of  a  kingdom ;  jet  he,  with  a  host  of 
other  ancient  worthies,  will  put  you  to 
silence.  They  all,  without  exception, 
had  stated  hours  to  retire  from  the  noise 
and  bustle  of  secular  business,  to  com- 
mune with  God  and  their  own  hearts. 
''Evening,  and  morning,  and  at  noonr 
says  the  Psalmist,  "  loiU  I  ][)ray  and  cry 
aloud,  and  he  shall  hear  my  voice''^  There 
are  many  who,  so  far  from  cultivating 
piety  during  the  week,  are  found  daringly 
to  encroach  upon  the  day  consecrated  to 
holiness  and  God — the  day  on  which  the 
Prince  of  life  and  glory  triumphed  over 
death,  "  ascended  up  on  high,  led  cap- 
tivity captive,  and  received  gifts  for  men, 
yea,  for  the  rebellious,  that  the  Lord  God 
might  dwell  among  them" — this  day  is 
devoted  by  many  to  calculations  of  the 
loss  and  gain  of  business  !  0,  what  deep 
depravity,  what  shocking  ingratitude  is 
'  Psa.  Iv.,  17 


186  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

this !  It  is  from  these  and  other  prac- 
tices that  might  be  specified,  we  are  ex- 
horted in  the  text,  to  redeem  the  time. 
The  important  duty  is  urged  upon  us  by 
the  following  powerful  motive  :  "  because 
tlie  days  are  evil" 

The  evil  days  spoken  of  were  those  in 
which  sin  and  wickedness  prevailed  to  an 
alarming  extent,  especially  among  the 
Gentile  nations  of  the  earth.  They  were 
famous  for  their  literature  and  knowledge 
of  the  arts  and  sciences  of  civilization, 
but  they  were  nevertheless,  sunk  into  the 
lowest  depths  of  superstition  and  moral 
debasement.  This  he  uses  as  an  argu- 
ment to  his  Christian  brethren,  why 
they  should  "ivalk  circiims]iectly,  redeeming 
the  time,''  lest  they  become  corrupted  by 
the  pernicious  errors  and  practices  that 
then  prevailed.  Does  not  a  similar  state 
of  things  exist  in  the  present  day?  It 
is  true  that  the  impressive  sound  of  the 
church-bell  regularly  bids  the  people  to 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM    THE    TIME.  187 

enter  the  courts  of  the  Lord's  house,  "  to 
hear  his  most  holy  word,  to  set  forth  his 
most  worthy  praise,  and  to  ask  those 
things  which  are  requisite  and  necessary 
as  well  for  the  body,  as  the  souL"  The 
heralds  of  the  cross  in  every  direction 
continue  to  beseech  their  fellow-men  to 
be  reconciled  to  God.  Sabbath  schools 
are  in  operation,  directing  the  young  in 
the  way  they  should  go.  Tracts  and 
other  religious  periodicals  are  scattered 
broad-cast  over  the  country  ;  yet,  maugre 
all  the  efforts  that  are  made  for  the  refor- 
mation of  man,  does  not  sin,  with  his  bra- 
zen front,  still  stalk  abroad  in  the  land, 
leaving  misery,  ruin,  and  desolation  in 
his  track  ?  How  many  may  we  see  on 
the  Lord's  day,  instead  of  being  in  the 
house  of  God  where  prayer  is  w^ont  to  be 
made,  either  standing  at  the  corners  of 
the  streets,  riding  about,  or  sailing  on 
pleasure  excursions,  or  assembled  together 
in  some  genteel  groggery  ! !  Is  not  the 
list  of  the  intemperate,  of  gamblers  and 


188  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IN. 

infidels,  fearfully  increasing  ?  Acts  of 
high-handed  robbery,  injustice,  cruelty, 
murder  and  the  like,  are  now  of  such 
frequent  occurrence,  that  they  cease  to 
affect  us.  St.  John  the  divine  informs 
us  that  he  ^' heard  a  loud  voice,  saying, 
Woe  to  the  inliahiters  of  the  earth  and  of 
the  sea  !  for  the  devil  is  come  doion  unto 
you,  having  great  wrath,  hecause  he  hnoweth 
that  he  hcdh  hut  a  short  time"^  We  do  not 
say,  that  this  prophecy  refers  to  the  pre- 
sent state  of  the  world,  but  we  may  say, 
that  the  prevailing  wickedness  of  the 
present  time,  shows  that  it  is  not  alto- 
gether inapplicable.  And  is  there  no 
danger  of  being  contaminated  in  the 
midst  of  so  much  wickedness  ?  Is  it  not 
as  true  now  as  ever,  that,  '^  Evil  commu- 
nications corrupt  good  manners  T  Have 
we  not  had  deplorable  instances  within 
our  own  immediate  observation,  of  the 
increase  of  crime  and  wretchedness  ? 
Do  we  not  see  some  young  men,  who,  a 
*  llcv.  xii.,  VI. 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM   THE   TIME.  189 

few  days  ago  gave  fair  promise  of  a  course 
of  honor  and  usefulness,  falling  victims 
to  the  vice  of  intemperance  ?  Where  is 
that  beautiful  and  interesting  array  of 
young  men  which  was  seen  with  sober 
mien  and  orderly  deportment,  engaged 
either  in  the  Sabbath  school,  or  taking 
part  in  the  surpassingly  beautiful  and 
sublime  services  of  our  church  ?  A  few, 
we  rejoice  to  say,  are  still  to  be  found  at 
their  post.  But  where  does  the  Sabbath 
find  too  many  of  them  now?  In  the 
path,  which  if  not  speedily  retraced,  will 
inevitably  lead  to  shame,  disgrace,  and 
ruin  in  this  world,  and  everlasting  pun- 
ishment in  the  world  to  come.  This  is 
an  ensnaring  world — the  moral  atmos- 
phere by  which  we  are  surrounded  is 
charged  with  death.  And  if  we  would 
avoid  being  fatally  infected,  we  must  re- 
deem  the  time,  we  must  improve  it  by 
daily  seeking  that  divine  aid  which  will 
enable  us  to  resist  with  success,  the  many 
temptations  that    beset  our  path ;  other- 

17 


190  ADMONITION    TO  [SER.  IX. 

wise,  you  will  be  carried  down  the  stream 
of  this  world's  delights,  and  be  finally 
lost  in  the  gulf  of  endless  woe. 

2.  By  evil  days  the  apostle  had  refer- 
ence to  the  days  of  persecution.  When 
he  wrote  the  epistle  in  which  the  text  is 
found,  he  was  imprisoned  at  Rome,  then 
the  seat  of  learning,  and  the  metropolis 
of  the  world,  for  the  testimony  he  bore 
to  the  despised  doctrines  of  the  cross.  In 
this  view  his  argument  may  run  thus : — 
tliG  days  are  evil. — You  are  daily  liable  to 
be  dragged  to  a  loathsome  prison,  thence 
to  the  place  of  execution,  therefore,  I 
exhort  you,  to  "  itxdh  circiimspecdy^'  cor- 
rectly, '•'not  as  fools,  hut  as  tvisej  redeem- 
ing the  timer 

We  may  not  consider  our  lives  to  be  in 
danger  from  the  spirit  of  persecution. 
We  are  permitted  to  sit  under  our  own 
vine  and  fig-tree,  none  daring  to  molest 
us.  But  are  we  secure  against  the  attack 
of  some   of  the    multiplied   diseases   and 


SER.  IX.]  REDEEM    THE    TIME.  191 

disasters  which  daily  carry  our  fellow-crea- 
tures to  the  grave  ?  Are  you  certain  of 
living  another  week,  another  day,  nay, 
another  hour?  Do  you  not  see  some  as 
young,  healthy  and  gay  as  yourselves, 
fade  away  under  the  blightings  of  disease, 
and  finally  fall  like  the  leaves  of  autumn  ? 
Have  you  made  a  league  with  death  that 
it  shall  not  come  nigh  you  ?  Were  you 
not  included  in  the  sentence, — ''  Dust  thou 
art,  and  unto  dust  shaJt  thou  return  f  Ah  ! 
it  cannot  be  long  before  the  solemnly  im- 
pressive words  in  our  burial  service  will 
be  pronounced  over  every  one  of  us  now 
in  divine  presence :  ''  earth  to  earth, 
ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust."  Oh,  does 
it  become  man,  mortal  man,  critically 
situated  as  he  is,  passing  swiftly  through 
time  to  the  eternal  world,  where  his  des- 
tiny will  be  unalterably  fixed  in  a  state 
of  happiness  or  misery,  depending  upon 
the  character  formed  in  this  probationary 
state ;  I  say,  does  it  become  him  in  such 
circumstances,  to  be  squandering  his  time 


192      ADMONITION  TO  REDEEM  THE  TIME.     [SIR.  IX. 

ill  the  vain  pleasures  and  vicious  practices 
of  the  world  ?  Should  he  not,  on  the 
contrary,  regard  every  flying  moment  as 
precious,  and  be  diligent  in  "  working 
out  his  own  salvation  with  fear  and 
trembling,  while  God  worketh  in  him 
both  to  will  and  do  his  good  pleasure  ?" 
This  course  your  own  conscience  approves, 
and  the  word  of  God  enjoins.  Let  the 
time  past  suffice  wherein  you  have 
wrought  folly.  Resolve  now  that  in  the 
strength  of  divine  grace,  you  will  no 
longer  live  unto  yourselves,  but  unto 
Him  who  died  for  you  and  rose  again. 
And  may  He,  "of whose  only  gift  it 
Cometh  that "  we  can  do  unto  him  "  true 
and  laudable  service,  grant,  that  you  may 
so  faithfully  serve  him  in  this  life,  that 
you  fail  not  finally  to  attain  his  heavenly 
promises  through  the  merits  of  Jesus 
Christ  our  Saviour." — Amen. 


SERMON    X. 

THE     WISDOM     OF     DULY     CONSIDERING     THE 
LATTER    END. 

"  Oh  that  they  were  wise,  that  they  understood 

THIS,    that   they   would    CONSIDER   THEIR    LATTER    END." 

Deut.  xxxii.,  29. 

It  is  a  serious  thought,  not  always  easy 
to  thrust  aside,  that  every  thing  pertain- 
ing to  this  life  must  come  to  an  end,  how 
soon  none  can  tell.  This  is  a  secret  veiled 
in  the  bosom  of  the  great  Eternal.  The 
solemn  truth  we  cannot  evade;  the  con- 
viction is  deep  in  our  minds,  that  all 
things  which  now  delight  the  eye,  gratify 
the  taste,  dazzle  and  delude  the  giddy, 
and  which  excite  the  ambition  of  a  vain 
multitude,  all  shall  have  an  end.  The 
stars  themselves  shall  fade,  the  sun  grow 

17* 


104  THE   WISDOM    OF   DULY  [SER.    X. 

dim  with  age,  the  earth  shall  wax  old  as 
doth  a  garment,  and  be  changed  :  and 
man,  its  honored  inhabitant,  involved  in 
the  same  destiny,  like  the  flowers  of  the 
field,  shall  fade,  wither,  and  finally  die. 
Every  thing  around,  about,  and  within  us 
is  calculated  to  prompt  us  to  the  import- 
ant duty ;  "  so  to  number  tjur  days,  that  we 
may  apply  our  hearts  unto  ivisdomr  The 
setting  sun  closing  his  golden  eye  in  the 
west — the  faded  leaf  falling  to  the  earth 
— the  majestic  river  flowing  on  gradually 
until  finally  lost  in  the  bosom  of  the 
ocean — the  daily  spectacle  of  "  man  going 
to  his  long  home,  and  the  mourners  walk- 
ing along  the  streets,"  all  are  so  many 
monitors  of  Providence,  reminding  us  of 
the  solemn  change  w^e  individually  must 
shortly  make.  But  notwithstanding  the 
instructive  lessons  that  pour  in  upon  us 
from  these  and  other  sources,  like  the  Is- 
raelites to  whom  the  text  primarily  refers, 
the  great  majority  of  mankind  will  not 
be  wise :  more    stupid  than   the  ox,  they 


8ER.  X.]     CONSIDERING    THE    LATTER   END.  195 

will  not  understand,  they  will  not  "  consi- 
der their  latter  end."  Happy  for  you,  my 
brethren,  did  you  all  form  an  exception — 
happy,  were  you  free  from  the  charge  of 
a  criminal  thoughtlessness  upon  this  all 
important  subject.  But  you  are  not  so 
devoid  of  candor  as  to  present  your  claim 
to  innocence  on  this  point.  Well  do  you 
know,  and  often  have  you  felt  the  appli- 
cation of  the  text  in  your  own  case ;  often 
have  you  heard  the  still,  but  powerful  voice 
within,  exclaiming, — "  Oh,  that  you  loere 
wise,  that  you  understood  this,  that  you  would 
consider  your  latter  end  I" 

The  two  following  propositions,  will 
form  the  foundation  of  the  remarks  that 
we  shall  offer  for  jour  consideration. 

1st.  A  due  consideration  of  our  latter 
end,  is  the  part  of  true  wisdom. 

2d.  The  unwillingness  of  men  to  be 
wise  in  those  things  which  involve  their 
highest  interest,  affords  matter  for  deep 
lamentation. 


J 96  THE    WISDOM   OF   DULY  [SER.    X. 

1.  Duly  to  consider  our  end  is  not  occa- 
sionally to  bestow  some  thought  upon  the 
subject.  This  we  cannot  avoid  if  we 
would.  Thoughts  of  death,  will  now  and 
then,  of  their  own  accord,  flit  across  the 
mind  of  every  man.  He  is  compelled,  by 
the  law  of  his  nature,  which,  while  it 
leads  him  to  look  forward  to  other  future 
events,  constrains  him  to  give  some 
thoughts  to  the  subject  of  his  mortality. 
But  such  a  consideration  as  this,  does  not 
constitute  true  wisdom.  A  due  conside- 
ration of  any  subject,  is  to  give  it  that 
practical  attention  Avhich  its  importance 
demands.  If  our  end  consisted  in  the 
total  annihilation  of  both  soul  and  body; 
were  we  destined  to  be  remanded  back  to 
nothing;  then,  the  proper  consideration 
of  our  end  would  lead  us  to  confine  our 
thoughts  chiefly  to  this  world.  The  dic- 
tates of  wisdom  would  be  for  us  to  make 
the  best  we  could  of  our  ephemeral  exist- 
ence— "  to  cat,  drink,  and  be  merry." 
But  annihilation  is  not  our  destiny. 


SKR    X.]     CONSIDERING    THE    LATTER   END.  197 

^'  A  voice  within  us  speaks  the  startling  word, 
Man,  thou  shalt  never  die.  Celestial  voices 
Hymn  it  around  our  souls." 

There  will  only  be  a  temporary  separa- 
tion of  parts — the  spiritual  from  the 
material.  The  body  will  moulder  away 
to  its  original  elements  and  remain  in 
that  condition  until  animated  and  recon- 
structed again  by  the  voice  of  the  Arch- 
Angel  and  the  trump  of  God.  The  soul, 
not  subject  to  dissolution  and  decay,  will 
be  conveyed  to  the  Paradise  of  God,  there 
to  await  in  joyful  anticipation,  the  con- 
summation of  its  bliss,  reunited  to  the 
body,  in  God's  eternal  and  everlasting 
kingdom  :  or  else  be  "  driven  away  in  its 
wickedness,"  to  participate  in  the  horrors 
of  those  condemned  spirits  that  are  "  re- 
served in  chains  of  darkness  unto  the 
judgment  of  the  great  day  :"  depending 
upon  the  character  formed  in  this  proba- 
tionary state.  It  is  unnecessary  to  cite 
the  Scripture  passages  that  contain  the 
truths  here  advanced.    Your  perfect  fami- 


1C8  THE   WISDOM    OF    DULY  [SER.    X. 

liarity  Tvith  them,  we  take  for  granted. 
Seeing  then,  that  in  the  ''  Latter  end"  of 
man,  his  happiness  or  misery  will  be  unal- 
terably fixed  forever,  a  due  consideration 
of  it,  would  unquestionably  lead  him  to 
prepare  to  avoid  the  one  and  enjoy  the 
other.  And  here  the  great  question 
arises,  how  can  sinful  man  be  thus  pre- 
pared ?  How  can  he  who  has  transgressed 
the  laws  of  his  Maker,  and  rendered 
himself  obnoxious  to  his  sore  displeasure, 
become  reconciled  to  him,  restored  to  his 
favor  and  image  here,  and  be  advanced  to 
honor,  dignity,  glorj^,  and  endless  happi- 
ness hereafter  ?  There  is  a  way,  and  but 
one  way ;  viz.,  "  the  new  and  living  way 
opened  up  for  us  by  the  blood  of  Jesus." 
Reason  debased,  for  ijenturies  tried,  but 
in  vain,  to  find,  the  sure,  the  narrow  way, 
that  leads  to  glory  and  immortality.  But 
it  pleased  God  in  infinite  benevolence,  to 
devise  the  plan  by  which  "  He  can  be  just 
and  yet  the  justifier  of  him  that  believ- 
eth  in  Jesus,  with  a  heart  unto  righteous- 


SER.  X.]     CONSIDERING    THE    LATTER   END.  199 

ness."  ''  God  so  loved  the  world,  as  to  give 
Ills  only  hegotieii  Son,  that  ivliosoever  heliev- 
etli  in  him  slioidd  not  perish,  hut  have  ever- 
lasting life."^  We  may  clothe  ourselves 
in  the  garment  of  self-righteousness,  we 
may  felicitate  ourselves  on  the  ground  of 
our  own  goodness,  and  be  esteemed  by  a 
short-sighted  world  as  the  best  of  citizens, 
but  this  will  be  found  at  last  to  be  a  poor 
preparation  for  an  exit  from  time  to  eter- 
nity. With  no  other  preparation  than 
our  own  righteousness,  we  shall  be  like 
the  man,  spoken  of  in  the  Gospel,  who 
built  his  house  upon  the  sand,  "  When 
the  rains  descended  and  the  Hood  came 
and  beat  upon  his  house,  it  fell  and  great 
was  the  fall." 

Nothing  can  be  more  absurd  than  the 
idea  of  man  attempting  to  recommend 
himself  to  the  favor  of  God  by  his  own 
fancied  goodness.  He  has  often  violated 
the  law  of  God  which  denounces  death 
upon  the  transgressor ;  yet,  he  attempts 
*  St.  Juo.  iii.,  16. 


200  THE   WISDOM   or   DULY  [SER.    X. 

to  gain  the  favor  of  God  by  his  outward 
observance  of  it,  seeking  to  be  justified  by 
the  law,  that  condemns  him  as  a  trans- 
gressor, and  continually  cries  : — "  Pay 
that  thou  owest" — settle  up  for  your  past 
follies.  Let  us  suppose  that  you  are  now 
blameless  so  far  as  may  relate  to  your 
outward  deportment.  What  is  to  be  done 
with  the  follies  and  vanities  of  youth  ? 
What  amends  can  you  make  for  your 
past  thoughtless  indifference,  and  criminal 
negligence  of  God  and  of  his  claims  upon 
your  undivided  service  ?  You  must  re- 
member, that  his  law  requires  a  line  of 
perfect,  unfaltering  obedience  from  the 
time  of  our  accountability  to  the  end  of 
life.  Its  terms  are  rigid.  Its  language 
is: — "Do  this  and  liver  ''The  soid  thai 
sinneth  it  shall  die."  Ah,  self-righteous 
man,  you  are  in  a  dilemma.  You  must 
either  enter  and  make  good  your  plea  at 
the  bar  of  your  judge,  of  perfect  obedience 
on  your  part,  or  humbly  fall  at  the  foot- 
stool of  mercy,  sue  lor  pai'doii,  and  plead 


SER.  X.]     CONSIDERING   THE   LATTER   END.  201 

the  perfect  obedience,  and  vicarious  death 
of  another,  viz.,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
To  perfect  obedience  to  the  law,  you  can 
lay  no  claim.  "  All  have  sinned  and  come 
short  of  the  glory  of  God."  None  can 
"  tell  how  oft  he  offendeth."  To  be  justi- 
fied by  the  deeds  of  the  law,  therefore,  is 
impossible.  The  great  provision  made  in 
the  gospel,  is  the  only  hope  of  sinful  man. 
If  then  we  would  be  prepared  to  meet 
death  in  perfect  peace,  we  must  be  "  found 
in  Christ,  not  having  our  own  righteous- 
ness which  is  of  the  law,  but  that  which 
is  through  the  faith  of  Christ,  the  right- 
eousness which  is  of  God  by  faith."  The 
promise  of  eternal  blessedness  is  to  those 
only,  who  are  thus  united  to  Christ,  by 
that  faith  "  which  works  by  love,  purifies 
the  heart  and  overcomes  the  w^orld ;"  who 
have  been  raised  from  a  death  of  sin, 
unto  a  new  birth  unto  righteousness,  by 
the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  are 
walking  as  those  who  are  alive  from  the 
dead.  The  persons  who  answer  this  de- 
ls 


202  THE  WISDOM   OF  DULY  [SER.   X. 

scrip tion  have  been  graciously  brought  to 
understand,  and  duly  consider  their  latter 
end.  They  have  availed  themselves  of 
God's  plan  of  reconciliation.  Hence,  they 
are  truly  wise.  That  man  would  be  con- 
sidered wise,  who  in  having  to  travel 
over  a  trackless  desert  infested  by  rave- 
nous beasts,  first  provided  himself  with 
proper  guards,  and  other  necessaries  pro- 
per to  render  his  journey  both  safe  and 
comfortable.  In  our  pilgrimage  through 
mortality,  many  dangers  beset  our  path, 
from  the  world,  the  flesh  and  Satan.  Is  he 
not  eminently  wise,  who  has  chosen  the 
Lord  for  his  portion,  his  strong  tower  and 
defence  ?  Such  an  one  need  not  fear  any 
evil  tidings,  his  heart  may  be  fixed,  trust- 
ing in  the  arm  of  the  Lord.  That  man, 
who,  before  rearing  his  superstructure, 
first  secures  a  foundation  of  sufficient 
strength  to  bear  its  weight,  may  be  con- 
sidered wise;  but  how  much  more  so 
should  he  be  considered,  who  rears  his 
hopes  of  heaven  and  eternal   happiness 


SER.  X.]    CONSIDERING  THE  LATTER  END.  203 

upon  the  Rock  of  Ages,  the  sure  and 
immutable  foundation  which  God  himself 
has  laid  in  Zion.  He  who  provides  in 
spring  and  summer  against  the  cold  and 
chilling  winds  of  winter  is  wise :  but  how 
much  more  so  is  the  man  who  provides 
for  his  solid  comfort  against  the  cold 
blasts  of  death  by  securing  a  shelter 
under  the  everlasting  arm?  Such  an 
one  judges  rightly  in  that  which  should 
concern  him  most ;  in  that  which  involves 
his  highest  and  best  interests ;  hence  he 
is  pre-eminently  wise.  He  regards  him- 
self only  as  a  pilgrim,  a  sojourner  here. 
He  sets  his  affections,  not  on  things  below, 
but  on  things  above.  His  conversation  is 
in  Heaven.  He  puts  a  proper  estimate 
upon  the  things  of  this  life.  He  uses  the 
world,  as  not  abusing  it.  He  passes 
through  things  temporal  so  as  not  to  lose 
those  things  that  are  eternal.  He  rea- 
sons thus. — The  things  that  are  seen,  are 
temporal,  but  the  things  that  are  not  seen 
are  eternal.     What  then  would  it  profit 


204  THE   WISDOM   OF   DULY  [SER.    X. 

me  were  I  to  gain  the  whole  world  and 
finally  lose  my  soul  ?  Were  all  its  wealth 
and  honor  and  glory  mine,  I  could  keep 
them  only  a  few  days.  But  if  I  lose  my 
soul,  it  is  not  lost  for  a  limited  time,  but  lost 
forever.  Seeing  that  his  immortal  spirit 
outweighs  the  world  with  all  its  magnifi- 
cence and  all  its  glory,  he  wisely  ^^  counts 
all  things  but  dung  and  loss,  that  he 
might  win  Christ,  and  be  found  of  him  in 
peace."  But  how  little  of  this  heavenly 
wisdom  is  to  be  found  in  the  world  ?  If 
we  contemplate  man  as  an  inhabitant  of 
this  earth,  without  reference  to  eternity, 
and  consider  his  great  and  wonderful 
achievements  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  we 
are  forced  to  acknowledge  his  eminent 
wisdom.  But  when  we  regard  him  as  a 
candidate  for  eternity,  what  a  falling  off 
is  here.  Plow  blind,  how  grossly  ignorant 
is  he  in  his  spiritual  and  eternal  concerns  ! 
And  it  is  not  because  of  the  impossibility 
of  his  displaying  the  same  wisdom  in  this 


SER    X.]    CONSIDERING   THE   LATTER   END.  205 

direction  as  in  the  other,  but  solely  be- 
cause he  loill  not — he  loill  not  be  wise. 

The  Scriptures  represent  man's  unwil- 
lingness to  accept  the  offers  of  mercy  as 
made  to  him  in  the  gospel,  as  the  chief 
cause  of  his  final  ruin.  "  Ye  tvill  oiot  cc/ine  to 
me^'  says  Jesus,  '^  that  ye  might  have  life^^ 
^'  0  Jerusalem y  Jerusalem,  thou  that  killest 
the  prophets  and  stonest  them  which  are  sent 
unto  thee,  how  often  would  I  have  gathered 
thy  children  together,  as  a  hen  gathereth  her 
chickens  under  her  wings,  a7id  ye  ivoidd  not ! 
Behold,  your  house  is  left  unto  you  deso- 
later^ 

"  Because  I  have  called,  and  ye  refused  ;  I 
have  stretched  out  my  hand,  and  no  man  re- 
garded :  But  ye  have  set  at  nought  all  my  coun- 
sel and  tuould  none  of  my  reproof.  I  also  tvill 
laugh  at  your  calamity :  I  ivill  jnocJc  lohen 
your  fear  cometh :  lohen  your  fear  cometh  as 
desolation,  and  your  destruction  cometh  as  a 
lohirlivind,  when  distress  and  anguish  cometh 
upon  you.    Then  shall  they  call  upon  me,  hut  I 

*  St.  Jno.  v.,  40.  2  Matt,  xxiii.,  37-38. 

*18 


206  THE   WISDOM   OF   DULY  [SER.    X, 

will  not  cmsiDer,  tliey  sliall  seeh  me  early ^  hut 
they  shall  not  find  me.  For  that  they  hated 
hnowledge,  and  did  not  choose  the  fear  of 
tlie  Lord.  They  ivoidd  none  of  my  counsel^ 
they  despised  all  my  reproof  Therefore, 
shall  they  eat  of  the  fruit  of  their  ovm  loay, 
and  he  filled  ivith  their  oivn  devices"^ 

We  pass  on  to  consider. 

II.  The  unwillingness  of  men  to  be 
wise  in  those  things  which  involve  their 
highest  interest,  aflforcls  matter  for  deep 
lamentation.  To  see  a  man  dwelling 
close  to  a  perennial  spring  of  w^ater,  and 
yet  wdth  great  labor  and  fatigue  hewing 
out  first  one  broken  cistern,  and  then 
another,  and  after  multiplied  disappoint- 
ments to  die  of  thirst,  could  not  fail  to 
excite  our  pity  for  his  consummate  folly. 
In  this,  we  have  a  faint  i3icture  of  the 
conduct  of  men  generally.  The  fountain 
of  living  waters,  is  wdthin  the  reach  of 
>  Prov.  i.,  24-31. 


SER.  X.]    CONSIDERING   THE   LATTER   END.  207 

every  man.  He  has  an  unconquerable 
thirst  for  happiness.  But  instead  of 
seeking  it  where  alone  it  can  be  found, 
he  tries  this,  that  and  the  other  expedi- 
ent, and  though  disappointed  over  and 
over  again,  he  will  not  be  wise  ;  he  dies 
eternally,  he  perishes  for  lack  of  those 
heavenly  streams,  which  he  might  have 
received  if  he  would,  "  without  money 
and  without  price."  The  prodigal  son,  w^ho 
strayed  away  from  the  paternal  care  of  a 
kind  parent,  squandered  his  substance  in 
riotous  living,  and  reduced  himself  to  a  state 
of  starvation  and  wretchedness,  was  truly 
an  object  to  be  pitied.  But  preeminently 
so  are  those  who  have  strayed  away  from 
the  wholesome  restraints  of  their  Heaven- 
ly Father.  Unwilling  to  yield  to  the 
holy  requisitions  of  his  love,  they  follow 
the  devices  and  desires  of  their  own 
hearts.  See  the  multitudinous  crowd  of 
immortal  men,  wending  their  way  in  the 
"  broad"  road,  led  on  by  Satan,  the  god  of 
this  world.     A  portentous  storm  is  gath- 


208  THE   WISDOM   OF  DULY  [SER.    X. 

ering  not  far  in  the  distance.  The  day  of 
God's  wrath  is  at  hand,  and  they  are  out 
in  that  dangerous  and  destructive  path 
without  a  shelter,  and  in  a  filthy,  ragged, 
and  starving  condition.  Their  Heavenly 
Father  is  willing  to  shelter  them  beneath 
his  everlasting  arm  ;  to  wash  them  in  the 
blood  of  the  everlasting  covenant,  to 
clothe  them  with  the  robe  of  righteous- 
ness ;  to  feed  them  with  the  bread  of 
heaven.  He  condescends  to  call  after 
the  wanderers  in  the  language  of  paternal 
affection :  "  My  son,  give  one  thy  heartr^ 
He  expostulates  wdth  them,  saying, — 
'^  How  Jong  ye  simple  ones,  will  ye  love  sim- 
plicity, and  fools  hate  hnowledge  f^  "  Where- 
fore do  ye  spend  money  for  that  which  is  not 
hread  ?  and  your  lahor  for  that  which  satis- 
fietli  not  ?  hearlzen  diligently  unto  me,  and 
eat  ye  that  wldch  is  good,  and  let  your  soul 
delight  itself  in  fatness.''^  But  all  these 
kind  calls  and  tender  expostulations  are 
disregarded.  The  deluded  souls  continue 
*  Prov.  xxiii.,  26.     =  Prov.  i.,  22.     « Isa.  Iv.,  2. 


SER.  X.]    CONSIDERING   THE   LATTER   END.  209 

to  wander  farther  and  farther  from  God. 
Still  he  cries  after  them  :  "  Turn  you,  turn 
you  at  my  reproof r  Some  wander  at  such 
an  awful  distance,  that  the  voice  of  mercy 
which  once  came  home  to  them  with  power, 
now,  dies  away  in  whispers  upon  their 
obdurate  hearts.  They  wander,  until 
they  "  stumble"  at  last  "  upon  the  dark 
mountains,"  and  plunge  headlong,  into  the 
whirlpool  of  endless  perdition.  This  is 
the  silly  part  acted  by  that  being  who  is 
so  prone  to  pride  himself  on  the  dignity 
of  his  nature.  We  would  not  cast  any 
reflection  upon  his  dignity;  we  would 
rather  mourn  over  the  strong  indications 
he  gives  of  a  moral  desolation.  He  pre- 
sents a  scene  truly  affecting.  He  is  like 
a  noble  mansion  in  ruins.  The  grand 
and  lofty  columns,  the  fine  exquisite 
workmanship,  wdiich  are  still  seen,  are 
striking  evidences  of  former  greatness : 
but  the  glory  has  departed.  It  is  natural 
for  us  to  linger  in  pensive  melancholy,  as 
we  behold  the  remaining  traces  of  depart- 


^10  THE   WISDOM   OF  DULY  [SER.    X. 

ed  grandeur.  There  is  something  enchant- 
ing in  the  sight,  that  keeps  us  fast  bound 
to  the  spot.  Our  eyes  are  fixed  upon  tlie 
spectacle.  We  compare  the  past  with  the 
present,  and  the  sad  contrast  affects  the 
heart,  and  awakens  the  tenderest  emo- 
tions. The  unconscious  tear  stands  tremb- 
ling in  the  eye,  as  we  behold  the  melan- 
choly scene.  But  there  is  nothing  so 
affecting,  so  much  to  be  lamented,  as  the 
jDcrverse  ol)stinacy,  and  rebellious  course 
of  impenitent  sinners.  It  was  in  view  of 
this,  that  the  Psalmist  exclaimed  :  "  Rivers 
of  waters  run  doivn  mine  eyes,  because  tliey 
Iceep  not  tliy  laioT^  It  was  in  view  of  this, 
that  the  blessed  Jesus  lingered  about  Je- 
rusalem, and  "  loept  over  it"  saying,  "  If 
tlian  liadst  hnown,  even  thou  at  least  in  tJiis 
thy  day,  the  things  which  belong  unto  thy 
peace!  but  noio  they  are  hid  from  thine 
eyes!'^  It  was  in  view  of  this,  that  the 
great  Jehovah  himself,  is  represented  as 
lamenting,  in  the  terms  expressed  in  our 
»  Psa.  cxix.,  13G.  =  St.  Luke  xix.,  41-42. 


SER.  X.]  CONSIDERINa  THE  LATTER  END      211 

text, — "  0,  that  they  were  ivise,  that  they 
understood  this,  that  they  ivould  consider 
their  latter  end  I " 

Permit  me  now,  my  brethren,  to  urge 
you  forward  in  the  glorious  pursuit  of 
true  wisdom.  Of  all  other  inquiries,  let 
this  be  the  all-absorbing  one — What  shall 
I  do  that  I  may  inherit  eternal  life  ?  How 
may  I  ensure  a  blissful  immortality  when 
my  flesh  and  my  heart  shall  fail  ?  Get 
wisdom,  but  with  all  your  getting,  get 
understanding.  See  to  it,  that  you  lay  up  a 
good  foundation  aga^inst  the  time  to  come. 
Ignorance  here,  is  fatal.  Better  be  a  way- 
faring man  and  a  fool  in  other  matters, 
so  that  you  be  wise  unto  salvation,  than 
to  stand  upon  the  loftiest  pinnacle  of 
earthly  wisdom,  and  be  ignorant  in  hea- 
venly things.  The  advantages  of  earthly 
wisdom  are  confined  to  this  world ;  but 
the  wisdom  which  is  from  above,  leads  us 
besides  "  the  still  waters"  of  comfort  in 
this  world,  and  introduces  into  that  glori- 


212  THE  WISDOM  OF  DULY      [SER.  X. 

ous  region  above,  where  is  fulness  of  joy 
and  pleasures  forevermore.  I  entreat  you 
then,  above  all  things,  to  get  this  wisdom 
— the  wisdom  that  includes  a  preparation 
against  that  hour,  when  the  earth  shall 
recede  and  disappear,  and  eternity  with 
all  her  awful  realities,  shall  break  in  upon 
your  astonished  sight.  Prepare,  by  break- 
ing ofi'  your  sins,  by  righteousness  and 
turning  to  the  Lord,  in  full  purpose  of 
heart.  Prepare,  by  obtaining  an  interest 
in  the  merits  of  Christ,  who  died  for  our 
offences,  and  was  raised  again  for  our  jus- 
tification. He  is  your  only  hope.  He  is 
the  only  rod  and  staff  that  can  comfort 
you  when  called  to  pass  the  valley  and 
shadow  of  death.  He  is  the  "  bright  and 
morning  star"  that  can  light  up  your  path- 
way from  earth  to  heaven.  Then  be  wise. 
Choose  him  for  your  portion.  Take  him 
for  your  "  all  in  all."  Pass  through  things 
temporal,  so  as  not  to  lose  those  things 
that  are  eternal ;  counting  all  things  but 
loss,  so  that  you  may  win  Christ,  and  be 
found  of  him  in  peace. 


SEKMON    XI. 

A  SACRED   NEARNESS   TO  GOD  RECOMMENDED. 

'*  Draw  nigu  to  God,  and  he  will  draw  nigh  to  you." 

Gen.  Epis.  James  iv.,  8. 

In  discoursing  from  the  words  of  the 
text,  we  shall  be  led  to  consider, 

First, — The  distant  relation  that  fallen 
man  sustains  to  his  Maker. 

Second, — The  duty  enjoined  upon  man 
to  DRAW  nigli  to  God. 

Thirdly, — The  encouragement  to  the 
performance  of  this  duty. — He  will  draw 

NIGH  TO  YOU. 

1.  The  distant  relation  that  fallen  man 
sustains  to  his  Maker.  The  great  God  in 
his  essential  presence,  is  not  far  from  any 
one  of  us.     "  He  is  about  our  bed,  and 

19 


214  A  SACRED  NEARNESS      [SER.  XI. 

about  our  path,  and  spies  out  all  our 
ways."  He  fills  the  great  immensity  of 
space,  and  is  therefore,  everywhere  pre- 
sent at  the  same  time.  This  truth,  too 
large  for  either  human  or  angelic  minds 
fully  to  grasp,  is  set  forth  by  the  Psalmist 
in  language  the  most  lofty  and  sublime : 
"  Whither  sJiall  I  go  from  thy  Spirit  ?  or 
whither  shall  I  flee  from  thy  presence  ?  If 
I  ascend  up  into  heaven  thon  art  there.  If 
I  make  my  hed  in  hell  behold  thou  art  there. 
If  Itahe  the  wings  of  the  morning  and  dioell 
in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  sea,  even  there 
shall  thy  hand  lead  me,  and  thy  right  hand 
shall  hold  me'"^  God  is  present  to  spy  out 
all  our  thoughts,  motives,  intentions,  dis- 
positions, tempers  and  actions  :  He  is  pre- 
sent to  know,  sustain  and  uphold  every 
minute  part  of  his  widely  extended  crea- 
tion, whether  animate  or  inanimate;  aye, 
his  presence  extends  far  beyond  the  bounds 
of  those  innumerable  worlds  that  roll  in 

*  Psa.  cxxxix.,  7-10. 


SER.  Xr.]  TO   GOD   RECOMMENDED.  215 

the  wide  expanse  of  heaven  ;  infinitely 
further  than  the  imagination  can  possibly 
reach.  But  notwithstanding  the  great 
Eternal  be  thus  everywhere  present,  and 
of  course  nigh  unto  all  of  us,  yet,  fallen 
man,  nevertheless,  stands  at  an  awful 
distance  from  him.  The  Omnipresence 
of  God  is  one  of  his  natural  attributes. 
It  follows  as  a  necessary  consequence  of 
his  existence.  It  is  just  as  impossible 
for  the  Creator  not  to  be  Omnipresent,  as 
it  is  for  him  not  to  exist.  And  that  the 
non-existence  of  the  Deity  is  impossible, 
is  clear  from  what  strikes  our  senses  in 
every  direction.  We  see,  for  instance, 
a  variety  of  living  creatures  on  the  earth, 
in  the  air,  and  in  the  waters.  And  we 
know  that  they  could  not  create  them- 
selves ;  they  must  depend  upon  some 
other  cause  for  their  existence  ;  and  that 
cause  must  be  absolutely  independent ; 
for  an  eternal  succession  of  dependent 
beings  is  impossible.  There  must  be  an 
end   to   the   chain   of  secondary  causes, 


216  A    SACRED   NEARNESS  [SER.    XI- 

and  that  end,  is  the  uncaused,  uncreated 
God.  Thus  we  see,  that  the  non-exist- 
ence of  God  is  impossible.  And  that  he 
should  not  be  Omnipresent,  is  equally 
impossible.  He  being,  as  we  have  seen, 
uncreated ;  he  must  necessarily  be  abso- 
lutely independent ;  and  the  being  who 
is  absolutely  independent,  must  be  Omni- 
potent, must  possess  Almighty  power, 
power  to  do  everything  that  does  not 
imply  a  contradiction.  And  he  who  has 
power  thus  to  do  everything,  must  be 
everywhere  present;  for  we  cannot  con- 
ceive of  power  to  do  anything,  where 
there  is  no  agent  to  exert  that  power. 
But  there  are  other  attributes  of  the 
Deity  spoken  of  in  the  Holy  Scriptures 
denominated  moral ;  such  as  his  holiness, 
justice,  goodness  and  truth.  We  need 
recite  only  a  few  passages  that  relate  to 
God's  moral  excellency.  "  Who  is  like 
unto  thee,  0  Lord,  among  the  cjods  ?  Who 
is  like  thee,  (jlorlous  in  hoUnessJ'^  ''  Thou 
*Ex.  XV.,  11. 


SER.  XI.]  TO   GOD   RECOMMENDED.  217 

art  of  prn^er  eyes  than  to  heliold  evil,  and 
canst  not  look  on  iniquit/j.^'^  "  God  is 
lujht,  and  in  him  is  no  darkness  at  all!'^ 
Of  his  justice  they  thus  speak.  ''Jus- 
tice and  judgment  are  the  habitation  of  thy 
throner^  "  He  is  excellent  in  poioer  and 
in  judgment,  and  in  'plenty  of  justice!^"^ 
They  are  equally  explicit  in  declaring 
his  goodness  and  truth.  "  The  Lord,  the 
Lord  God,  merciful  and  gracious,  long- 
suffering,  and  abundant  in  goodness  and 
truthr^  Now  it  is  the  duty  and  high 
privilege  of  man  to  be  conformed  to  the 
Divine  nature  in  his  moral  excellence. 
But  when  we  contemplate  unregenerate 
man,  either  in  the  light  of  experience  or 
revelation,  we  cannot  fail  to  see  the  vast 
distance  at  which  he  stands  from  that 
moral  likeness  of  God,  which  it  is  his 
privilege  to  bear.  God  is  holy ;  he  looks 
upon  sin  with  infinite  abhorrence.     But 

*  Hab.  i.,  13.  » 1st  Epis.  Gen.  Jno.  i.,  5. 

5  Psa.  Ixxxix.,  14.  *  Job  xxxvii.,  23. 

^  Ex.  xxxiv.,  6. 

19* 


218  A  SACRED  NEARNESS      [SER.  XT. 

man  is  unholy ;  he  is  conceived  and  born 
in  sin.  Sinful  thoughts,  desires,  afiec- 
tions  and  tempers,  he  freely  indulges  in, 
while  sinful  practices  and  pursuits  are 
engaged  in  by  him  with  delight.  God  is 
just;  but  man  is  unjust.  He  is  unjust 
to  himself,  as  he  fails  to  bestow  the  atten- 
tion that  is  due  to  the  paramount 
interests  of  his  spiritual  nature.  This 
being  the  case,  he  cannot  be  otherwise 
than  unconcerned  about  the  spiritual  and 
eternal  concerns  of  his  fellow-creatures. 
He  is  unjust  towards  God,  in  withholding 
that  reverential  fear  and  devout  service 
to  which  he  has  an  indisputable  claim. 
God  is  good.  His  goodness,  like  the 
bright  sun  in  the  heavens,  shines  along 
the  pathway  of  every  child  of  Adam  that 
comes  into  the  world.  In  all  his  works 
and  ways,  he  evidently  has  a  kind  regard 
to  the  happiness  of  the  creatures  he  has 
made.  But  unrenewed  man  is  so  far 
from  bearing  the  moral  likeness  of  his 
Maker  in  this  respect,  that,  on  the  con- 


SER.  XI.]  TO    GOD   RECOMMENDED.  219 

trary,  all  his  works  and  ways  tend  ulti- 
mately, not  only  to  his  own  misery,  but 
to  the  utter  ruin  also  of  all  over  whom 
he  has  influence.  To  use  the  strong 
language  of  scripture  : — "  Destruction  and 
misery  are  in  their  ways,'^  "  and  the  way  of 
peace  have  they  not  hnoivn!'^  We  have 
thus  given  a  brief  sketch  of  the  moral 
image  of  unrenewed  man.  And  how 
unlike  the  moral  likeness  of  his  Maker? 
The  -one  is  Light,  the  other,  darkness. 
Now  so  long  as  man  maintains  this 
position,  so  long  as  he  stands  in  this 
opposing  relation  to  his  Maker,  he  can- 
not be  happy.  It  is  impossible.  Where 
is  there  an  intelligent  creature  in  the  wide 
universe,  who  can  be  happy,  unless 
approbated  by  his  Maker,  the  only  source 
of  happiness  ?  And  can  the  great  Su- 
preme, approbate  a  character,  that  is  in 
direct  opposition  to  his  own  ?  No,  never. 
Light  and  darkness  can  amalgamate 
sooner  than  the  Eternal  God  can  look 
»  Horn,  iii.,  16-17. 


220  A  SACRED  NEARNESS      [SER.  XI. 

with  complacency,  either  upon  man  or 
angel,  that  does  not,  in  his  measure,  bear 
his  moral  image  and  likeness.  There  is 
a  perpetual  war  between  the  two.  God 
has  no  fellowship  with  the  wicked.  And 
the  wicked  have  no  communion  with  him. 
''  The  carnal  mind  is  enmity  against  Gocir 
The  final  issue  of  this  hostility,  according 
to  the  sacred  oracles,  will  be  terrible  in 
the  extreme.  They  teach  us  that  "  the 
day  conietli,  when  all  the  proud"  con- 
temners of  God's  law,  '^  and  all  that  do 
wickedl}^,"  shall,  at  the  awful  sentence  of 
the  Judge,  "  go  away  into  everlasting 
punishment,  where  shall  be  weeping  and 
wailing  and  gnashing  of  teeth."  Awfully 
tremendous  is  the  doom  that  awaits  the 
finally  impenitent.  But  as  our  heavenly 
Father  "  hath  no  pleasure  in  the  death  of 
the  wicked,  but  that  the  wicked  turn 
from  his  wickedness  and  live,"  he  has  in 
infinite  kindness  devised  a  plan  by  which 
be  may  escape  that  misery  to  which  his 
native  opposition  to  God  will   certainly 


SER.  XI.]  TO    GOD   RECOMMENDED.  221 

lead.  There  is  no  way,  however,  of 
escape  for  man,  unless  he  alter  his  posi- 
tion, unless  a  radical  change  take  place 
in  his  moral  character.  Hence  the  ex- 
hortation in  the  text — "Draw  nigh  to 
God."  As  man's  distance  from  the  moral 
image  of  God  is  particularly  alluded  to, 
so  to  draw  nigh  to  Him,  is  to  advance 
progressively  towards  his  divine  image, 
and  likeness.     We  draw  nigh  to  God : — 

1.  By  repentance.  Repentance  pro- 
perly speaking  comprehends  three  things, 
viz. :  conviction  of  sin,  sorrow  on  account 
of  it,  and  the  forsaking  of  it.  The  search- 
ing light  of  heaven  first  discloses  to  the 
sinner  the  sad  reality  that  his  "  whole 
head  is  sick,"  and  his  "whole  heart  faint;" 
that,  "  from  the  sole  of  the  foot  even  unto 
the  head  there  is  no  soundness  in  it,  but 
wounds,  and  bruises,  and  putrifying  sores :" 
that  "  have  not  been  closed,  neither  bound 
up,  neither  mollified  with  ointment."  This 
view  of  native  depravity,  this  conviction 


222  A   SACRED   NEARNESS  [SER.    XI. 

of  sin,  is  accompanied  with  a  generous 
sorrow  on  account  of  it.  ''  /  am  iceary^^ 
says  penitent  David,  "ivltJi  my  groaning  ; 
all  the  night  malce  I  my  hed  to  sioim :  I  water 
my  couch  with  my  tears.  3Iine  eye  is  con- 
sumed because  of  griefr^  This  sorrow, 
however,  is  not  merely  a  mental  anguish 
arising  from  the  fear  of  punishment,  but 
a  tender  and  filial  grief  for  having  sinned 
against  the  most  endearing  goodness,  and 
offended  the  kindest  and  best  of  friends. 
No  other  consideration  pierces  the  soul 
so  deep  and  causes  it  to  overflow  with 
penitential  sorrow,  as  the  thought  of  its 
ingratitude  and  rebellion  against  Him  who 
bought  us  with  the  Saviour's  blood.  He 
sums  up  all  his  guilt  and  crime  in  the  peni- 
tent acknowledgement  —  "  Against  thee^ 
thee  only  have  I  sinned  r^  This  conviction 
of  and  sorrow  for  sin,  lead  to  the  forsaking 
of  it.  The  penitent,  like  the  prodigal  in 
the  Gospel,  forms  the  resolution  to  arise 
from  his  state  of  wretchedness,  and  he  is 
Psa.  vi.,  G-7.  "  Psa.  li.,  4. 


SER.  XI.]  TO   GOD  RECOMMENDED.  223 

enabled  through  grace  to  put  his  resolu- 
tion into  practice  :  he  arises,  brings  forth 
fruit  meet  for  repentance,  ceasing  to  do 
evil  and  learning  to  do  well.  ^'The  vows 
that"  he  "made,  or  that  was  made  in" 
his  "  name  at"  his  "  baptism,"  he  ratifies 
and  confirms,  "acknowledging"  himself 
"  bound  to  believe  and  to  do  all  those 
things  which"  he  "then  undertook,  or" 
his  "sponsors  undertook  for"  him. 

The  soul  has  now  so  far  changed 
its  position,  that  whereas  sin,  in  which 
it  formerly  took  so  much  delight,  now 
appears  in  all  its  native  odiousness,  as 
something  to  be  loathed  and  shunned. 
He  perceives  also  a  beauty  in  the  holiness 
of  God  which  he  never  saw  before,  and 
his  anxious  desire  is  to  be  conformed  in 
his  measure,  more  and  more  to  the  same 
image.     Hence  he  draws  nigh  to  God. 

2.  In  the  exercise  of  faith.  Under 
the  dispensation  of  the  Gospel,  God  has 
appointed  repentance  and  a  lively  faith 


224:  A    SACRED   NEARNESS  [SER.    XI. 

in  his  mercy  through  Christ,  as  the  terms 
to  be  complied  with  on  the  part  of  man 
in  order  to  his  restoration  to  the  divine 
favor.  Hence  the  command  :  "  Repent 
YE  AND  BELIEVE  THE  GosPEL."^  So,  when- 
ever a  soul  is  suitably  humbled  under  a 
sense  of  his  sins,  though  he  may  see 
sufficient  grounds  for  self-reproach  for  his 
former  ingratitude,  his  mmatural  and  long 
continued  rebellion  against  God,  yet  he 
goes  to  his  heavenly  Father  with  the 
determination  to  submit  to  his  govern- 
ment, imploring  and  relying  upon  his 
mercy  through  Christ.  We  repeat,  that 
he  relies  upon  God's  mercy  through  Christ. 
For  we  have  no  grounds  to  expect  pardon- 
ing mercy  at  the  hands  of  God  in  any 
other  way  than  through  faith  in  Jesus 
Christ.  "No  man  can  come  to  me,''  says 
Jesus,  "except  the  Father  iDliicli  hath 
sent  ME,  DRAW  iiiM."^  Again  he  says, 
"Him  that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise 
cast  outy^  Here  we  learn  that  in  the 
*  St.  Mark  i.,  15.    ^Juo.  vi.,  44.   ='Jno  .  vi ,  37. 


SER.  XI.]  TO   GOD   RECOMMENDED.  225 

economy  of  grace  God  the  Father  draws 
man :  he  draws  him  by  the  cords  of  love, 
he  sheds  light  into  his  mind,  and  dis- 
covers unto  him  his  wretched  condition ; 
he  shows  him  the  great  provision  his  love 
has  made  for  his  salvation,  he  directs  him 
to  look  to  the  Lamb  he  has  appointed  to 
take  away  the  sins  of  the  world.  And 
whenever  the  penitent  in  obedience  yields 
to  this  drawing,  and  centres  all  his  hopes 
in  Him  who  gave  himself  a  ransom  for 
all,  then  to  such  an  one  the  promise  in 
the  text  is  verified.  The  Lord  in  his 
mercy  draws  nigh  to  that  soul. . 

1.  He  draws  nigh  to  impart  a  com- 
fortable sense  of  pardon  and  reconcilia- 
tion. 

He  sheds  abroad'in  the  believing  heart  a 
peace  thg-t  the  world  cannot  give ;  a  peace 
that  passeth  all  understanding.  "  Tlie 
Spirit  itself,''  says  St.  Paul,  "  heareth  wit- 
ness ivith  our  spirit  that  ive  are  the  children 


20 


i:2n  A   SACRED   NEARNESS  [SER.  XT. 

of  Gocir^  And  being  emancipated  through 
grace,  from  the  servile  fear  of  wrath  and 
condemnation,  they  are  enabled  to  ap- 
proach God  as  their  Almighty  friend  and 
Father,  from  whose  inexhaustible  fulness 
they  receive  all  that  they  need,  both  for 
time  and  eternity.  God  deals  with  them 
as  children.  He  manifests  himself  unto 
them  as  he  doth  not  unto  the  world,  by 
imparting  unto  them  light,  life,  strength, 
comfort  and  consolation,  to  aid  them  to 
walk  in  the  path  of  holiness.  Once  they 
Avere  strangers  to  communion  with  God, 
but  now  they  know  what  it  is  to  enjoy 
sweet  fellowship  with  the  Father  and 
with  his  Son  Jesus  Christ.  But  as  they 
are  daily  exposed  to  a  very  formidable 
opposition  to  their  advancement  in  the 
divine  life;  an  opposition  from  the  world, 
the  flesh  and  Satan,  through  whose  influ- 
ence they  would  inevitably  fall  if  left  to 
themselves,  the  Lord  draws  near, — 

*  Rrnn.  viii.,  10. 


SER.  XI.]  TO    GOD   RECOMMENDED.  227 

2.  To  guide,  direct  and  support  them. 
At  all  times,  and  under  all  circumstances 
of  trial,  he  is  near,  whispering  in  tones 
sweeter  than  heavenly  music,  saying  unto 
them,  ''Fear  not ;  he  7iot  dismayed,  I  am  thy 
God,  I  will  uphold  thee,  I  will  strengthen 
theer  Though  they  pass  through  the 
waters  of  affliction,  he  assures  them  that 
''  they  shall  not  be  overflowed."  And 
when  they  are  called  to  "  walk  through 
the  valley  and  shadow  of  death,"  he  will 
be  the  rod  and  staff  to  comfort  them,  and 
will  ultimately  lead  them  to  that  eternal 
rest  that  remains  for  the  people  of  God. 

How  thankful  we  should  be,  my  breth- 
ren, for  the  great  provision  that  is  made 
for  us  in  the  gospel.  We  had  by  wicked 
works  alienated  ourselves  from  God,  ren- 
dered ourselves  obnoxious  to  his  wrath 
and  sore  displeasure — ''  treasured  up  unto 
ourselves  wrath  against  the  day  of  wrath 
and  revelation  of  the  righteous  judgment 
of  God."  But  in  his  infinite  benevolence 
he  contrived  a  plan  by  which  we  may  be 


228  A  SACRED  NEARNESS      [SER.  XI. 

brought  back,  restored  to  his  favor  and 
image  here,  and  finally  exalted  to  ever- 
lasting happiness  in  the  bright  world 
above.  Let  those  who  have  been  gra- 
ciously brought  into  a  sacred  nearness  to 
God,  show  their  thankfulness  for  this  ines- 
timable privilege,  by  making  nearer  ap- 
proaches to  him,  by  diligent  attendance 
upon  all  the  appointed  means  of  grace — 
daily  cultivating  those  graces  of  the  Spirit 
which  in  the  sight  of  God  are  of  great 
price.  "  The  path  of  the  just  is  as  the 
shining  light,  which  shines  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day."  The  nearer 
you  ajDproach  to  Him,  the  nearer  will  He 
be  found  to  you,  imparting  more  light  to 
direct  you  in  the  way  in  which  you  should 
go ;  more  strength  to  enable  you  to  resist 
your  spiritual  foes ;  more  comfort  to  ani- 
mate you  on  your  pilgrimage.  Thus 
advancing  in  the  divine  life,  being  ambi- 
tious to  comprehend  with  all  saints,  what 
is  "the  length  and  breadth,  height  and 
depth,  and  to  know  the  love  of  Christ 
which  passeth  knowledge,"  you  may  hope 


SER.  XI.]  TO   GOD   RECOxMMENDED.  229 

to  have  an  abundant  entrance  into  that 
kingdom  where  is  fulness  of  joy  and  plea- 
sures forevermore. 

We  would  now  address  a  few  words, 
especially,  to  that  part  of  our  hearers  who 
are  far  off  from  God  by  wicked  works. 
My  impenitent  hearers,  consider  what  a 
fearful  position  you  occupy — enemies  to 
the  great  God  of  the  universe  !  You  may 
be  shocked  at  this,  but  it  is  nevertheless 
true.  Every  one  now  in  Divine  presence, 
who  has  arrived  to  the  years  of  maturity, 
and  is  found  in  a  state  of  impenitency,  is 
an  enemy  to  God.  You  are  rebels  against 
His  government.  You  stand  in  battle 
array  against  him,  led  on  by  "  the  Prince 
of  Darkness,  he  who  now  worketh  in  the 
hearts  of  the  children  of  disobedience." 
And,  what  do  you  suppose,  will  be  the 
issue  of  this  hostility  ?  Canst  thou,  whose 
habitation  is  in  the  dust,  contend  with 
the  arm  of  Omnipotence  ?  Suppose  the 
wrath  of  every  individual  in  this  commu- 
nity was  aroused  against  you,  would  you 


230      A  NEARNESS  TO  GOD  RECOMMENDED.   [SER.  XT. 

stand  singly  and  alone,  and  contend 
against  it  ?  No.  You  would  escape  for 
your  life ;  you  would  prefer  a  lodging  in 
some  vast  wilderness.  But  what  will  you 
do  when  the  Lord  "  ariseth  to  shake  terribly 
ilie  earth?''  When  the  great  day  of  his 
wrath  shall  come,  whither  shall  you  fly  ? 
"  Behold,  he  cometh  luith  clouds,  and  every 
eye  shall  see  him,  and  they  that  jpierced 
him."  Where  now  will  you  find  shelter 
from  that  "Jire  that  shall  devour  he/ore 
Him?"  Where  in  the  wide  universe 
will  you  then  find  an  all-availing  friend  ? 
Thank  God,  that  we  are  yet  pirsoners 
of  hope,  that  a  Throne  of  Grace  is 
erected,  and  that  sinners  may  now 
obtain  mercy  and  find  grace  to  help  them 
in  their  time  of  need.  I  beseech  you, 
therefore,  to  improve  these  precious  pri- 
vileges, while  as  yet  pardon  may  be 
obtained.  Lay  down  the  weapons  of 
your  rebellion,  and  fight  against  God  no 
^"^ '  more.  Acquaint  now  thyself  with  Ilim, 
and  be  at  peace.  Draw  nigh  to  Ilim,  and 
He  will  draw  nigh  to  you. 


SERMON    XII 


HAPPY  END   OF  THE    SERVANTS   OF   GOD. 


"For  David  after  he  had   served  his  own  genera- 
tion BY  the  will  of  God,  fell  on  sleep."* 

Acts  xiii. — 36. 


It  requires  but  little  reflection  clearly 
to  perceive,  that  the  benevolent  Author 
of  our  existence  has  sent  us  into  the  world 
to  be  active  :  active  in  the  discharge  of 
all  those  duties  that  conduce  to  our  own 
individual  happiness,  and  the  happiness  of 
those  around  and  about  us.  The  chain 
of  mutual  dependence  that  connects  the 
one  family  of  man  together ;  the  progres- 
sive improvement  in  moral  and  intellec- 

*  Preached  on  occasion  of  the  death  of  Eev.  Peter 
Williams,  rector  of  St.  Philip's  Church,  New  York 
city,  Nov.  15th,  1840. 


232  HAPPY   END    OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

tual  worth  of  which  he  is  susceptible; 
the  clear  indications  he  gives  of  being  an 
heir  of  immortality,  destined  to  survive 
the  globe  he  inhabits ;  all  show,  that  he 
has  been  made  an  inhabitant  of  this  world 
for  quite  different  jourposes  than  to  sit 
down  on  the  lap  of  ease,  and  be  a  mute 
spectator  of  what  he  beholds  around  him. 
"  I  must  worh  the  worhs  oflmn  that  sent  me 
while  it  is  day  .-"^  was  the  motto  of  our 
divine  exemplar,  while  his  dwelling  was 
among  the  sons  of  men.  True  it  is,  that 
no  mortal  man,  nor  flaming  seraph,  was 
adequate  to  the  great  work  which  he,  in 
amazing  condescension,  undertook  to  per- 
form, and  which  he  so  triumphantly 
finished.  But  it  is  vain  for  any  to  bear 
His  name,  who  is  not  actuated  by  the 
same  principle  of  devotedness  to  God,  that 
shone  so  conspicuously  in  His  eventful 
life. 

The  life  of  the  Christian  is  a  state  of 
service.      He   is  in   the   condition   of  a 

*  John  ix.,  4. 


SER.    XTI.]  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.  233 

servant,  ordered  with  others  into  their 
Master's  vineyard,  to  perform  a  certain 
amount  of  labor.  They  all  have  a  day 
in  which  they  may  attend  to  the  work 
allotted  them.  And,  however,  some  may 
loiter  away  their  time  and  neglect  their 
work  in  defiance  of  the  orders  given,  the 
Christian,  as  a  good  and  fixithful  servant, 
is  found  diligently  employed  at  the  post 
assigned  to  him.  Being  duly  impressed 
with  the  importance  of  what  he  has  to 
do,  and  with  the  value  of  time  allotted 
him,  he  "  works  out  his  own  salvation 
with  fear  and  trembling,  while  God 
worketh  in  him  [both  to  will  and  to  do  of 
his  good  pleasure."  He  lahoi^s  to  have 
that  "  Kingdom"  established  in  his  heart 
that  consisteth  in  ^'  righteousness,  peace 
and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost."  The  oppo- 
sition he  meets  with  in  this  work,  affords 
him  ground  for  greater  diHgence.  The 
world,  in  all  its  fascinating  and  bewilder- 
ing charms,  is  often  presented,  in  order 
to  divert  his  attention;    the  remains  of 


234  HAPPY    END    OF    THE  [SER.    XII. 

inward  depravity  often  prove  a  source 
of  much  trouble  and  difficulty  in  the  way 
of  his  progressive  improvement ;  Satan, 
that  invisible  but  powerful  enemy,  uses 
his  various  devices  to  harass,  intimidate 
and  dishearten.  But  maugre  all  this 
hostile  and  formidable  array,  he  is  ena- 
bled in  the  strength  of  Jesus  to  persevere 
in  his  course.  He  adds  to  his  "-faith, 
virtue;  and  to  virtue,  knoioledge ;  and  to 
Tcnowledge,  temperance :  and  to  temperance, 
patience;  and  to  patience,  godliness ;  and 
to  godliness,  hrotherly-ldndness ;  and  to 
hrotlierly-hindness,  charityr^  The  Chris- 
tian, in  order  to  be  successful  in  securing 
his  own  personal  salvation,  finds  that  it 
requires  continual  watchfulness,  prayer, 
self-denial  and  diligent  attendance  on  all 
the  appointed  means  of  grace.  But  his 
efforts  do  not  terminate  on  himself. 
"  He  serves  his  generation.'^  He  "  looks 
not  on  his  own  things,"  exclusively, 
"  but  also  on  the  things  of  others." 
1  2d  Peter  i.,  5-6-7. 


SER.    XII.]  SERVANTS    Or   GOD.  235 

True  religion  expands  the  heart ;  it  leads 
those  who  pay  homage  at  her  holy  altar 
to  devote  a  portion  of  their  time  and 
talents  towards  ameliorating  the  condi- 
tion of  their  fellow-men.  While  it  con- 
sists with  paying  special  regard  to  our 
own  personal  happiness,  or  the  happiness 
of  those  with  whom  we  are  connected  by 
the  ties  of  blood,  conjugal  relation  or 
Christian  fellowship,  it  cannot  be  confined 
within  these  narrow  limits.  Unrestricted 
by  these  ties,  it  extends  its  kind  wishes 
and  benevolent  regards  to  the  limits  of 
the  habitable  globe.  Its  sincere  and 
devout  prayer  is ;  —  "  Thy  Kingdom 
come :  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as 
it  is  in  heaven."  Nor  does  it  rest  in 
kind  feelings  towards  mankind.  It  lends 
a  helping  hand  to  all  those  institutions 
whose  object  is  to  advance  peace  and 
happiness,  truth  and  justice,  religion  and 
piety  throughout  the  earth.  Under  its 
expanding  influence  our  hearts  and  hands 
will  be  open  to  supply  the  needy,  and  to 


236  HAPPY   END   OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

every  species  of  distress  we  shall  be  dis- 
posed to  give  relief.  Even  towards  our 
enemies,  we  shall  not  be  satisfied  with 
verbal  expressions  of  kindness,  but  will 
be  ready  at  the  first  opportunity  to  give 
our  kindness  a  tangible  form. 

The  rule  by  which  the  Christian  is 
governed  in  his  actions  deserves  our 
notice. 

"He  serves  his  generation  by  the  will 
of  God."  It  is  possible  for  a  person  to 
render  very  important  services  to  the  age 
in  which  he  lives,  without  having  any 
reference  whatever  to  the  will  or  com- 
mands of  his  Maker.  He  may  give  libe- 
rally to  the  poor  and  needy,  he  may  exert 
his  talents  in  diffusing  correct  notions  on 
the  subject  of  human  rights;  he  may  take 
a  conspicuous  part  in  all  the  great  moral 
enterprises,  which,  like  "the  leaves  of  the 
tree  of  life,  are  for  the  healing  of  the 
nations,"  and  at  the  same  time  be  actu- 
ated   by    no    higher    motive    than    self- 


SER.    XII.]  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.  237 

aggrandizement.  "Yerily,"  as  our  Saviour 
said  of  the  Pharisees,  '^ihey  have  their 
reward."  They  may  obtain  the  object  of 
their  pursuit — "  the  praise  of  men ;"  but 
the  plaudit  of  Heaven  they  cannot  hope 
to  receive.  For  all  works  flowing  from 
such  motives,  however  extolled  among 
men,  are  in  the  sight  of  God  of  no  value. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  true  Christian  is 
governed  in  his  actions  by  a  due  regard 
to  God.  His  will  or  word  is  the  regu- 
lating principle  in  all  his  works  and 
ways.  In  whatever  station  Divine  Provi- 
dence sees  fit  to  place  him,  whether  in  a 
public  or  private — in  whatever  condition, 
whether  rich  or  poor,  high  or  low,  he 
makes  the  will  of  God  as  contained  in  his 
word  the  rule  by  which  he  acts.  This 
is  ever  a  "lantern  unto  his  feet  and  a 
light  unto  his  path."  What  a  wide  con- 
trast presents  itself  between  the  Phari- 
saical and  the  truly  godly  man.  While 
vain-glory  is  the  only  incentive  by  which 
the  former  is  moved,  the  latter  is  actuated 

21 


238  HAPPY    END    or   THE  [SER.    XII. 

by  motives  of  piety  to  his  Maker.  Charac- 
ters so  essentially  diifering  from  each  other, 
cannot  fail  to  secure  for  themselves  in  the 
end  widely  different  results.  Fame  and 
popular  applause  may  be  very  soothing 
to  the  worldly  mind  in  the  day  of  health 
and  manly  vigor.  But  when  the  solemn 
hour  of  departing  life  arrives  it  vanishes, 
leaving  the  trembling  spirit  agitated  under 
the  most  fearful  and  awful  apprehensions 
of  a  judgment  to  come.  But  the  faithful 
servants  of  the  Most  High,  ^  after'  having 
^'  served  their  generation"  '  hy,'  or  acccord- 
ing  to,  "  the  toUl  of  God,''  are  said  to  ''fall 
asleep!'  This  is  a  figurative  expression 
which  is  often  used  in  Scripture  to  signify 
the  peaceful  and  happy  termination  of 
the  Christian's  mortal  life.  Their  death 
is  represented  under  the  idea  of  sleep. 

1.  On  account  of  the  sweet  calm  and 
composure  in  which  they  depart  this  life. 
The  approach  of  death  excites  no  terror 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Christian,  because  he 
has  the  Lord  Jehovah  for  his  everlasting 


SER.    XII.]  SERVANTS    OF   GOD.  239 

strength.  It  matters  not  under  what  cir- 
cumstances he  comes,  whether  at  mid- 
night or  in  the  morning;  whether  in  a 
slow  measured  pace,  or  as  quick  as  the 
lightning's  flash,  he  walks  "  through  the 
valley  and  shadow  of  death,"  calm  and 
collected,  fearing  "  no  evil,"  for  the  "  rod 
and  staff"  of  his  divine  Master  afford  him 
unspeakable  "comfort."  "  The  sting  of 
deathb'  being  extracted,  he  is  enabled  in 
grateful  adoration  to  exclaim  :  "  Thanhs 
he  to  God  lohich  giveth  us  the  victory  through 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christr'^  Death  to  the 
pious  may  with  great  propriety  be  repre- 
sented under  the  idea  of  sleep. 

2.  Because  they  then  rest  from  all  the 
toils  and  cares  inseparable  from  this  pro- 
bationary state.  As  when  evening  comes 
on  the  labourer  takes  his  rest,  and  forgets 
the  toils  of  the  day  when  he  lies  down  to 
sleep,  so  at  death,  the  faithful  servant  of 
God  finishes  his  course  of  service,  retires 
»  1  Cor.  XV.,  57. 


240  HAPPY   END   OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

from  the  field  of  labor,  and  then  goes  to 
his  rest  in  the  Paradise  of  God.  There, 
he  joyfully  waits  in  anticipation  of  that 
"  cfi'own  of  rigJiteousness  icJiich  the  Lord,  the 
righteoits  Judge,  shall  give  at  thai  day,  unto 
all  them  that  love  his  aijpearingr^  The 
disembodied  spirit  in  the  heavenly  world, 
unquestionably,  enjoys  all  the  happiness 
that  it  is  capable  of  in  its  separate  state. 
But,  its  full  and  perfect  fruition  cannot 
be  realized  until  "Christ  shall  appear  the 
second  time  without  sin  unto  salvation." 
Then,  and  not  till  then,  shall  the  whole 
company  of  the  redeemed  exult  in  "  the 
saying  hraiight  to  pass ;^  that,  ''Death  is 
sivallowed  up  in  victory T^  This  leads  us 
to  consider. 

3.  Another  reason  why  the  pious  may 
be  said  to  'fall  asleep  in  death. — Their 
bodies  shall  then  be  raised  to  a  glorious 
immortality.  Revelation  teaches  that  at 
the  final  catastrophe  of  the  world,  man- 

1  2d  Tim.  iv.,  8.  ^  1  Cor.  xv.,  54. 


SER.   XII.]  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.  241 

kind  universally  shall  be  aroused  from 
their  long  slumbers,  and  be  made  to  start 
into  life.  But  so  broad  will  be  the  line 
of  distinction  drawn,  that  the  renewed 
cheerfulness  and  vigor  that  follow  rest, 
cannot  apply  to  all.  "  Many  of  them  that 
sleep  in  the  dust  of  the  earth  shall  aioahe, 
some  to  everlasting  life,  and  some  to  shame 
and  everlasting  contemptr^  "  The  hour  is 
coming^'  said  our  Lord,  "  in  the  wMch  all 
that  are  in  the  grams  shall  hear  his  voice ^ 
and  shall  come  forth  ;" — but  mark  the  dis- 
tinction; ''they  that  have  done  good  unto 
the  resurrection  of  life;  arid  they  that  have 
done  evil,  unto  the  resurrection  of  damna- 
tion"^  The  bodies  of  the  saints  shall  be 
formed  and  fashioned  like  the  glorified 
body  of  Christ :  made  capable  of  enjoying 
in  union  with  the  soul,  and  bearing  up 
under,  that,  "far  more  exceeding  and 
eternal  weight  of  glory. ''  Oh  !  how  full 
of  comfort  is  this  consideration  to  the 
believer.  While  he,'  with  a  sorrowing 
^  Dan.  xii.,  2.  =  John  v.,  28-29. 

21* 


242  HAPPY   END   OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

heart,  deposits  in  the  grave  a  departed 
friend  who  died  in  the  Lord,  he  may  look 
forward  with  a  lively  hope  to  the  resur- 
rection morning,  when  the  vast  empire  of 
death  shall  be  utterly  abolished;  when 
the  bodies  of  the  saints  shall  arise  all- 
glorious  and  immortal.  Then,  these 
earthly  tabernacles  will  no  longer  be  clogs 
to  the  soul  in  her  devotional  exercises; 
but  happy  instruments  and  assistants  in 
all  the  exalted  services  of  the  Church  tri- 
umphant above. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  wicked, 
being  ^'vessels  of  wrath  fitted 'to  destruc- 
tio7i,''  will  be  raised  with  bodies  built  upon 
indestructible  materials,  only  to  be  made 
capable  of  enduring  in  union  with  the 
soul,  that  "horrible  tempest"  of  wrath, 
which  is  to  be  their  portion  forever  and 
ever.  Oh,  who  does  not  wish  to  escape 
this  tremendous  doom  of  the  finally  im- 
penitent, and  to  share  in  the  inefiable 
glories  that  are  in  reserve  for  the  godly. 
Baalam   exclaimed :    ''  Let    me   die   the 


SER.    XII.]  SERVANTS   OF    GOD.  243 

death  of  the  righteous,  and  let  my  last 
end  be  like  his  !"^  But  how  vain  was 
such  a  wish  unaccompanied  with  the 
necessary  qualifications.  However  strong 
the  desire  of  the  ungodly  may  be  to  die 
the  death  of  the  righteous  and  to  have  a 
glorious  end  like  theirs,  it  can  never  be 
realized.  The  only  way  to  this,  is  to  live 
the  self-denying  and  pious  life  of  the 
righteous.  We  must  here  like  them  be 
raised  from  a  death  of  sin  unto  a  life  ot 
righteousness  by  the  power  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  And  being  thus  quickened  to  life, 
we  must  walk  "  as  those  that  are  alive 
from  the  dead:  seeking  for  glory ^  honor 
and  imm^ortality,  hy  a  'patient  continuance 
in  well-doing:  heing  carefid  to  maintain 
good  worhs,  that  are  good  and  profitable 
unto  menr  A  firm  foundation  of  peace 
and  comfort  at  the  closing  scene  of  life  is 
laid,  only,  after  we  have  thus  served  our 
generation  hy  the  will  of  God,  Such  was 
the  character  and  end  of  our  late  friend 
^  Num.  xxiii.,  10. 


244  HArPY   END   OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

and  brother,  the  Rev.  Peter  WiUiams; 
called  gtway  suddenly  to  us,  but  not  to 
him,  from  the  field  of  toil  and  labor,  to 
rest  in  Abraham's  bosom.  Our  departed 
friend  was  brought  under  the  influence  of 
saving  grace  in  the  most  favorable  season 
of  life.  He  gave  heed  to  the  admonition : 
"  Rememher  noio  thy  Creator  in  the  days  of 
thy  youth,  while  the  evil  days  come  not,  nor 
the  years  draw  nigh,  when  thou  shalt  say,  I 
have  no  pleasure  in  themr^  Blessed  as  he 
had  been  with  the  advantage  of  pious 
parents,  he  very  probably  traced  his  early 
religious  impressions  to  their  godly  admo- 
nitions and  counsels.  The  time  however 
came  that  'must  come  to  all,  when  the 
sacred  tie  that  bound  the  hearts  of  parents 
and  child  together,  had  to  be  severed  by 
death.  He  was  left  behind  to  mourn  the 
loss  of  them  for  awhile ;  but  with  what 
raptures  must  they  have  hailed  each 
other  as  they  met  again  on  the  borders  of 
the  heavenly  world,  to  part  no  more  for- 
*  Ecc.  xii.,  1. 


SER.    XII,]  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.  245 

ever.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  or  eighteen 
years,  he  became  a  communicant  member 
of  the  Episcopal  church  of  which  Dr. 
Lisle  was  pastor.  Soon  after,  he  assisted 
an  aged  gentleman,  whose  name  was 
Thomas  McKoom,  in  giving  catechetical 
instruction  to  the  children  assembled  in  a 
private  room  rented  for  that  purpose.  In 
the  same  place  a  number  of  adults  regu- 
larly met  on  Sunday  evenings  for  religious 
purposes.  The  exercises  were  generally 
conducted  by  Mr.  McKoom.  After  the 
death  of  this  gentleman,  Mr.  Williams 
was  regularly  appointed  lay-reader.  He 
acted  in  that  capacity  until  the  year  1820, 
at  which  time  he  was  ordained  deacon  by 
Bishop  Hobart  in  the  church  in  which  he 
dispensed  the  word  of  life  to  the  close  of 
his  earthly  pilgrimage.  He  was  ordained 
priest  by  the  same  Bishop  in  the  year 
1826.  He  manifested  a  deep  concern  for 
the  improvement  not  only  of  the  people 
of  his  charge,  but  for  his  brethren  gene- 
rally.    Hence  he  was  found  contributing 


246  HAPPY   END   OF   THE  [SER.    XII. 

his  influence  and  pecuniary  means  towards 
supporting  the  various  organized  instru- 
mentahties  that  had  a  tendency  to  elevate 
and  improve  the  condition  and  character 
of  his  oppressed  people.  I  doubt  very 
much,  whether  there  exists  in  the  city  of 
New  York  one  single  society  having  an 
immediate  bearing  on  the  general  interests 
of  our  people,  but  what  met  with  his 
countenance  and  support.  He  was  not 
conspicuous  in  these  matters.  For  no 
man,  perhaps,  was  less  given  to  display, 
or  aimed  less  at  popular  applause  than  he. 
If  he  could  hide  himself  from  personal 
gaze,  he  seemed  to  be  best  pleased.  His 
whole  deportment  seemed  to  say  : — 

"  Let  me  be  little  and.  unknown, 
Lov'd  and  priz'd  by  God  alone." 

A  retiring  modesty  and  unaffected  diffi- 
dence formed  a  very  prominent  feature 
in  his  character.  His  hopes  for  an  im- 
provement in  the  character  of  our  people 
were  in  the  young  and  rising  generation, 


SER.    XII.]  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.  247 

in  whom  he  manifested  a  lively  interest. 
Did  he  see  a  promising  youth,  who  lacked 
nothing  but  the  necessary  advantages  to 
enable  him  to  reflect  credit  on  himself  and 
people  in  a  moral  and  intellectual  point 
of  view;  he  was  the  man  that  would 
spare  no  pains  to  get  such  an  one  in  a 
situation  favorable  to  the  development 
of  his  powers.  He  took  delight  in  seek- 
ing out  such  cases.  There  is  now  a  high 
school  in  the  city  of  New  York  that  owes 
its  establishment  chiefly  to  his  untiring 
efibrts. 

He  was  a  universal  friend.  His  coun- 
tenance, which  was  expressive  of  kind 
and  benevolent  feelings,  added  to  that 
ease  and  gentleness  which  were  ever  seen 
in  his  manners,  told  every  one  that  ap- 
proached him,  that  he  was  in  the  presence 
of  a  friend.  He  loved  every  one,  hence 
he  was  universally  beloved  in  return. 
To  use  the  language  of  one  with  whom 
he  had  long  been  most  intimate  : — "  he 
was    a   friend    to   every   body — he   was 


248  HAPPY   END    OF   THE  [SER.    XIT. 

always  in  trouble  about  other  people's 
troubles.  He  was  a  kind  of  depository 
for  every  one  to  lodge  his  cares  and  anxie- 
ties. People  of  diflterent  denominations, 
whenever  they  got  in  difficulty,  would 
invariably  go  to  him ;  and  he,  in  the 
kindness  of  his  heart,  would  as  often  use 
his  endeavors  to  have  their  affairs  satis- 
factorily settled." 

As  it  regards  his  fidelity  and  zeal  in  the 
discharge  of  his  ministerial  duties,  I  need 
only  quote  the  words  of  his  Diocesan, 
delivered  on  the  day  of  his  interment. 
"  It  was  my  privilege,"  says  the  venera- 
ble Prelate,  "  to  be  often  the  depository 
of  the  cares  and  anxieties,  the  longing 
desires  and  earnest  endeavors,  the 
watchful  solicitudes,  the  cheering  hopes, 
the  affectionate  fears,  and  practical  de- 
pendance  on  God's  grace,  with  which  he 
gave  himself,  instant  in  season  and  out 
of  season  to  his  pastoral  charge.  I  have 
often  said,  and  would  now  say,  in  con- 


SE^.  XII.]  SERVANTS    OF   GOD.  249 

scious  sincerity  and  integrity  of  heart, 
that  in  all  the  wide  range  of  my  observa- 
tion, I  never  knew  a  pastor  whose  whole 
soul  seemed  more  engaged  in  the  great 
work  to  which  he  had  been  set  apart.  I 
have  seen  this  in  the  happy  results  of  his 
ministry,  and  felt  it  in  the  many  occasions 
on  which  he  has  taken  counsel  with  me 
in  matters  pertaining  to  his  high  and  holy 
trust." 

During  the  last  two  or  three  years  of 
our  departed  friend's  life,  it  was  evident 
to  his  friends  that  his  health  was  de- 
clining. I  have  been  informed  that  a 
little  while  previous  to  his  death,  he  had 
one  or  two  attacks  of  the  apoplexy ;  and 
that  he  was  impressed  with  the  idea  that 
he  would  be  called  away  in  one  of  these 
attacks.  The  solemn  messenger,  it  is 
true,  did  not  come  in  this  form,  but  his 
purpose  was  not  executed  with  less  des- 
patch. He  was  aroused  from  his  bed  at 
the  hour  of  11  o'clock,  Saturday  night, 

17th  ult.,  by  an  alarm  of  fire.     He  looked 
22 


250  HAPPY    END    OF   THE  [SER.   "XII. 

out  at  his  window,  and  immediately  com- 
plained of  a  difficulty  in  breathing;  and 
at  3  o'clock  Sunday  morning,  he  leaned 
his  head  on  his  Saviour's  bosom,  and 
breathed  his  life  out  sweetly  there.  Peace 
to  his  mortal  remains,  until  reanimated  by 
the  voice  of  the  Archangel  and  the  trump 
of  God. 

The  task  of  friendship  done  to  the 
memory  of  our  deceased  brother,  I  shall 
conclude  in  a  few  words  to  his  dear  rela- 
tives. And  here,  my  duty  is  easy.  I  have 
only  to  point  you,  my  dear  friends,  to  the 
consoling  ingredients  with  which  your 
cup  is  mixed.  You  are  taught  by  the 
holy  apostle,  St.  Paul,  not  to  be  sorry  as 
men  without  hope  for  those  who  sleep  in 
Jesus.  For  the  comfort  of  the  bereaved 
and  disconsolate,  a  voice  from  heaven 
proclaimed  : — ''  Blessed  are  the  dead  tclio 
die  in  the  Lord :  even  so  saith  the  Sjnrlt  : 
for  the?/  rest  from  their  lahorsr  I  know  it 
would  have  added  to  your  consoling 
thoughts,  if  your  hands  had  administered 


SER.    XII.].  SERVANTS   OF   GOD.       .  '        251 

to  the  last  necessities  of  decaying  nature ; 
if  you  had  been  permitted  to  stand 
around  him  and  witness  that  calm  sere- 
nity of  his  countenance  that  bespoke  his 
inward  peace.  But  the  great  Supreme, 
who  doeth  all  things  right,  ordered  it 
otherwise  :  and  it  is  for  us  to  quiet  every 
feeling  by  the  pious  consideration — "  It  is 
the  Lordr  Ever  cherish  his  memory  by 
following  his  example  of  piety  and  devo- 
tedness  to  God.  Take  Christ  as  your  por- 
tion, and  though  separated  you  must  be 
for  a  while,  you  shall  unite  again  in  that 
glorious  region  where  parting  shall  be  no 
more  forever.  May  we  all  be  awakened 
by  this  visitation  of  Providence,  to  a  deep 
sense  of  the  vanity  and  uncertainty  of 
human  life ;  and  be  graciously  led  to  seek 
supremely  those  things  which  are  above ; 
"  that  so,  among  the  sundry  and  manifold 
changes  of  the  world,  our  hearts  may 
surely  there  be  fixed,  where  true  joys  are 
to  be  found,  through  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord." — Amen. 


Si 


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